Hometown Boy (repost)
by DianaM -again
Summary: On oldie reposted in proper form. Duke is home recovering after the grievous injury in The Movie. His favorite redhead drops by for a visit.
1. Chapter 1

*This is one of many stories I posted back in the early 2000's. When I first uploaded then, Fanfiction dot com was a little different, and somehow, they got all screwed up. Thankfully the JWA page had the originals as well, and Annie was able to send me copies of the stories in original form, since the computer I had them on had spectacularly exploded in what I can only assume was a Cobra plot.*

Duke pulled the bandanna out of his back pocket and mopped the sweat from his brow. Fixing fences was backbreaking work. The heat didn't help things. Then again, Duke would rather do the job in summer than, say, January. He didn't fancy messing with post-hole diggers and barbed wire in a heavy winter sweater and oilcloth duster. In summer, at least, he could take off his shirt and feel the breeze against his skin.

Duke stuffed the bandanna back in his pocket and brandished the wire cutters. Two snips to neaten up extra wire, and the job was done. He looked at the new section of fence with satisfaction, "well, Wally, the east pasture is again open for business."

A large black stallion tethered to a nearby tree snorted.

"Ah, your just angry because it keeps you away from that pretty young filly up at Uncle Max's," Duke slapped the horse on the backside as he pulled his lunch from the saddlebag, "serves you right," he unscrewed the top from the thermos, filled it with cool lemonade, and downed it in one gulp. Sighing, he leaned against the tree's trunk and slid slowly into the grass, "don't much blame you, though, I'm in the same boat," Duke closed his eyes and smiled, "the one thing you want is WAY beyond reach. Almost enough to drive a man crazy," another loud snort, "or horse."

The stallion farted loudly.

"My sentiments exactly."

Duke reached inside the large brown paper bag that his mother had gotten up early that morning to pack for him. He had been at the fence since seven, tearing away the old, rotten post and rusty wire and replacing it with the new post and wire his uncle had trucked up to the pasture the day before. He had been somewhat surprised to drag himself up the steps from his basement room at six o'clock to find his mother making sandwiches in the kitchen. She hadn't done it for him for years. Not that he minded.

Duke pulled out two large sandwiches which proved upon closer inspection to be ham, cheese, and bacon. Two very yellow bananas rounded out the meal. Duke unfolded his napkin and smiled.

"Will you look at that?" he called up to the stallion, "all grown up, and Mom still writes messages." Duke yanked off his gloves and took a large bite of one sandwich. Chewing slowly, he cast his eyes over the pasture's gentle rolling hills. It was a lot of land, waiting for him. All he had to do was retire and settle down, and he could live a quiet life of raising horses and fixing fences.

"And be bored out of my skull," Duke refilled the thermos top and took a slow sip. He scratched his chin and sucked lemonade out of his mustache. He hadn't wanted to grow a beard, hadn't really ever planned on it. It was a natural result of lying on his back in the infirmary for weeks, unable to get to a sink, mirror, or razor. He had started to shave the whole thing off the first day of his leave, when he was strong enough to hold himself up in the bathroom at home, but something had stopped him once he saw the whiskers from his cheeks floating in the sink. So he left the mustache and goatee, which his youngest sister had promptly told him was passé and then joked that he was the "alternate universe" version of himself. Duke never cared much for fashion, and he sort of liked the beard, even though it itched a bit now and again. It made him look-different.

As he finished his second sandwich, Duke wondered once again how his new look would be received. It was an interesting thing to imagine. He smiled at the stallion, who was sniffing a banana with interest, " I guess I'll know come tomorrow."

Duke stood and stretched. He grabbed his shirt and slid his arms into the sleeves, but didn't bother with the buttons; the breeze was pleasant, and the fabric tended to chafe his scar when he didn't wear an undershirt. He retrieved his tools and slid the wire cutters into their pouch on his saddle. The bananas went back into the brown bag and joined the now empty thermos in a saddlebag. Duke untethered Wally and swung easily into the saddle. He leaned down, grabbed the post hole digger from where he'd leant it against the tree and slung it over his right shoulder. His left side was still weaker than he'd have preferred.

With his free hand, Duke gently snapped the reins. He clucked to his horse, "C'mon Wally, let's get home."

When they got to the barn, Duke rewarded Wally with a cube of sugar and a few alfalfa treats. Then he stripped off the tack, spent a good few minutes grooming, and let the stallion loose in an outside paddock, "would be a shame to put you in a stall on a day like this, Hoss." Duke leaned against the rails and watched the horse trot around the paddock with that distinctive bouncy gait.

After a few minutes, Duke turned and put the tools away. He was about to do the same with his tack when he noticed a few places on his saddle that could use a good scrubbing. Slinging the saddle over a nearby saddle tree, he went into the tackroom to get the saddle soap. He returned to find his mother taking the thermos and brown bag out of his saddlebags.

"Is the fence all fixed, dear?"

"Uh huh. Good as new," Duke untied the latigo holding the saddlebags to the back of his saddle and slung them over a nearby rail. He took the top off of the can of saddlesoap, dipped in a cloth, sat on a stool in front of the tree, and began cleaning the leather, "thanks for the lunch. The bacon was a nice extra"

His mother kissed him on the cheek. Were he Falcon's age, he might have winced, or even pulled away in embarrassment. Duke smiled up at her. He'd learned once again to appreciate her affection. She was a good woman.

She laid a gentle hand on his shoulder, "maybe it would be a good idea for you to take a nap, now that the fence is done."

"Nah, I took a look at some of the other tack when I was in there. Some of it is really filthy. I'll give it a good going over while I've got the soap out," he flipped a stirrup up to get underneath, "tell Drew saddles are expensive. If she doesn't take care of the one she's got, she'll have to buy new one herself."

"Which is why you're going to clean it for her today..." his mother sounded amused.

"Well," Duke stopped polishing and thought for a second, "I'll go for the guilt value."

"Yes, dear. I've found that about as effective with her as it was with you at her age."

"Hrm," Duke went back to cleaning, "well, she'll owe me then. I hate to leave it while I already have the soap. There's a few bridles that could use mending, come to think of it."

She smiled, "You're nervous, aren't you dear?"

"About what?" Duke slid his stool around to the other side of the tree.

"About tomorrow."

"What makes you say that?" Duke concentrated on what appeared to be a very tough spot of dirt and refused to meet his mother's eye.

"You're doing everything you can to come up with things to do. That way, you think your mind won't have a free minute to worry about it."

"Worry about what?"

She sighed, "about tomorrow, dear, although I don't know why. From what I've seen she's about as enamored of you as you are of her. But you're working yourself silly to avoid thinking about it."

"Now that's a funny idea," Duke dipped the cloth again into the soap, "why would you get the idea that I'd do a thing like that?"

Duke felt her hand on his chin. She lifted his face until so she could look at him, "Because, Conrad, your father used to do exactly the same thing," she smiled at him, "try to get a rest soon, dear. It's not good for you to overwork yourself. You're supposed to be relaxing," she ruffled his hair and straightened up, "do you think that we should have ribs for dinner tomorrow? I was planning on burgers for tonight, but if you want to switch..."

"Burgers tonight is fine. Ribs tomorrow is even better," Duke sat staring up at his mother. She smiled and turned to go back to the house. "Mamma?" his voice was almost a whisper.

"Mmmm?" she stopped and smiled over her shoulder.

"Sometimes I have trouble remembering him," Duke looked back down at his saddle. It had been his father's.

"Don't worry, dear. I see a lot of him in you, especially now," she continued on to the house. Duke finished the saddle and went to put it away and start work on his sister's.

That night after dinner, Duke relaxed in the den in his favorite chair. It was actually favored by pretty much everyone, and was usually the cause of many arguments among siblings. Duke solved the problem when home on leave; he simply grabbed whoever was in the way and tossed them onto the couch. Of course he always made sure to offer it to his mother, who, in turn, demurred on the grounds that he was so very rarely home to sit in it. His stepfather had his own solution- he went out and bought himself another chair and forbade anyone to sit in it. Both methods worked reasonably well.

Jennifer drifted off to occupy herself with whatever teen girls found interesting. It was a mystery to Duke, but for Jennifer it seemed to involve a large chunk of time glued to the phone. Drew dangled her arms around her brother from behind the chair. She rested her chin on his shoulder.

"Duke, can I go with you to the airport tomorrow?"

"Drew," their mother looked up from her book, "I think he'll want to spend some time alone with Scarlett."

Duke scratched his chin absentmindedly, "It might not necessarily be a problem. But you didn't really ask me the right way, Rabbit."

"_May_I go with you to the airport?"

"Well, better, but not what I meant. What's the magic word?"

"Alakazam!"

"Not that one, you little weirdo. Now I don't know if I want you there at all," Duke grabbed the sports section and opened it to the NBL listings.

"Please?"

"How about this; I pick her up at the airport, and later we can all go on a long ride?"

Drew sighed and let her arms slide off his shoulders, "I guess..."

Duke reached back and took hold of his kid sister. With a firm yank, he dragged her over the back of the chair and into his lap. She giggled and squirmed out of his grip, "thanks for cleaning my tack, Duke."

"Mmmm. yeah, you're pretty spoiled."

She kissed him on the cheek and flounced out of the room, calling over her shoulder, "Better shave! You feel like a porcupine." Her voice drifted back into the room from the kitchen, singing "Alternate universe Duuuuuuuukkkkeee."

Duke looked up from the sports section to find his mother regarding him with raised eyebrows. "Another year, dear, and she'll be too old for that kind of thing."

"You think? She's always been a cuddly sort of individual. It's hard to imagine her not. She's not exactly into the girly thing, though."

"Maybe. But she's already noticing boys in her class."

Duke dropped the paper to his lap, "Really? Little Drew?"

"Really. She's at the right age."

"I guess. I'll have to go on the offensive. Jennifer's guys are always good fun," Duke smiled and stretched luxuriously.

"Which reminds me-I'm not quite sure where to put Scarlett."

"Huh?"

"Well, the guest room is nice, of course, and I can have it ready in a minute. Had you had any other ideas?" Across the room, Jack cleared his throat loudly.

"Ahhhhhhh, well, um." Duke felt himself blushing.

"I thought you might have been planning something different, dear," her blue eyes blazed through him with a look that troops might have recognized on Duke. It wasn't an unpleasant smile, but it was, somehow, uncomfortable. Duke took refuge behind the newspaper.

"I don't know... I, uhhh, hadn't talked to her about it yet."

"Well, Its not urgent. Let me know where you think she'll want to be tomorrow."

It made Duke cringe inside, thinking about discussing his intimate life with his mother.

"Dear?"

"Oh, sorry. Yeah, sure, OK."

* * *

Duke wiped a sweaty palm on his jeans and returned it to the steering wheel. He hadn't expected to be this nervous; it was only Scarlett, after all. He was used to seeing her on a daily basis. Good old, dependable, familiar drop dead gorgeous Scarlett. She was a sensible woman; absolutely refusing to compromise herself for anyone.

Duke preferred that to those silly, giggly women that had been flinging themselves at him ever since Joe had become a media icon. Odd, Duke thought to himself, had he been Vincent's age, he would have enjoyed the fame and used every advantage it gave him. In fact, he surprised himself the first time he turned down the star struck and undeniably willing little thing that accosted him on a weekend pass. The boys had given him Hell for it later, too. She had been quite the looker. Still, Duke could remember feeling a definite lack of interest.

After meeting Scarlett, he found the fawning, bright eyed, possibly drunk-definitely easy type somewhat of a turn off. They seemed...insubstantial. Duke thought of Scarlett as on a completely different level from them. He found he enjoyed an hour or two just talking to her, and would choose it over a year of one night stands. Of course, eventually, she proved to him just how right his choice had been.

Duke smiled to himself at the thought. Lost in pleasant memories, he nearly missed the turnoff for the airport. Swearing to himself, Duke cut across three lanes of traffic. He just barely made the offramp, choosing to ignore the angry gestures and horns now left behind. Duke turned into the airport and managed to find a reasonably good parking space close to Scarlett's terminal. He sat in the car for a minute, calming his nerves and wondering why he was so hopped up in the first place. It was Scarlett, for Christ's sake! Scarlett, who ate a grapefruit and yogurt almost every morning since he'd first met her. Scarlett, who could kill a man ten different ways, but would rather eat molten lead than get less than ten feet away from a spider. Scarlett...whose face was the first one he longed to see when he came home from combat. That welcoming smile, those bright blue eyes...

Duke took a deep breath, grabbed his cap and slid out of the car. Normally he avoided hats, managing even to cut the Special Forces beret from his daily uniform. Drew had given him this cap for his birthday, and he actually had to admit to liking the thing. It kept the sun out of his eyes enough to be useful. And he needed that on a bright day like this one. Duke put on his sunglasses, locked the car and headed for the terminal.

He checked for her flight number on arrivals the screen and was surprised to discover that it had arrived early. Duke dashed to the gate and found it nearly deserted. He stopped an attendant heading for the desk, "excuse me, did flight 1342 come through here?"

The attendant smiled perkily at him. Duke had heard once that they were required to. Stupid job requirement. "You just missed them sir. I imagine they're all in baggage return by now."

Damn. Duke thanked the attendant and jogged across the terminal and down the escalator to baggage return. The room was packed. There were probably four or five planeloads of people gathered around the carrousels. Duke scanned the crowd and licked his lips nervously. There. Next to carousel three, a long red ponytail. Duke felt his heart jump and start to dance around in his stomach. He made his way through the crowd, getting to her side just as she spotted her bag. It was a huge thing, and she struggled to get the leverage and lift it off and over the lip of the carousel Duke reached down and grabbed the handle, easily hefting the monstrous suitcase up and then gently placing it on the floor. Scarlett beamed up at him, "Thank you!"

Duke smiled, but the grin slid from his face as she turned, grabbed the thin leash for her bag, and headed out of the terminal. He stood there for a second, confused, and then ran to catch up, "Hey!" he grabbed her shoulder and spun her around, looking slightly peeved. Duke recalled it wasn't always good policy to surprise Scarlett from behind. In the half second it took for her to turn, it dawned on him that his hat and glasses did a lot to hide his face and familiar blond hair.

"Scarlett,'" Duke whipped off the glasses and hat. Scarlett's annoyed frown grew into a smile.

"Duke!" She jumped into his arms. He swung her around once and gave her a tight hug; not letting her feet touch the floor. She laughed happily, and his heart jumped again at the sound. He gently let her down.

"Didn't you recognize me?" Duke looked into her eyes sadly. He would have thought...

She laughed again,"Well, the height was right, but most of you was hidden," she reached up and stroked his cheek. Duke couldn't help sighing. She tickled him under his chin, "It was this that threw me off. What's this all about?"

Duke had completely forgotten his goatee, "Oh, that. After I left the infirmary, I sort of never bothered getting rid of it all. What do you think?"

She rubbed his chin with her thumb, "Hmmmm.. I don't know. It's... different," She smiled up at him "I'm not sure."

He found himself lost in her eyes, "Here, try this," he mumbled, and pulled her into a kiss. He brushed his lips across hers gently, smelling the warm sweetness of the vanilla perfume she wore off-duty. He felt her wrap her arms around his neck. She relaxed against him, sighing. Duke deepened the kiss, holding her to him tightly and letting his cap drop to the floor. He let his tongue play across the tops of her teeth, and was pleasantly surprised when she met it with her own. Heart pounding, he was aware of a number of people watching them. It wasn't like him; he preferred to keep things intimate, but he found he couldn't help himself. He found her irresistible. He was glad to have left Drew at home.

The kiss ended, and he nuzzled her ear gently, "how was that?"

Scarlett rested her head against his chest, "Scratchy," she chuckled, "but very nice."

Duke kissed the top of her head, "I thought we could grab some lunch in the city before we head back."

"Sounds great, I'm starving."

Duke smiled down at her. With one arm wrapped around her shoulders, he leaned down and grabbed the leash to her suitcase, "let's go then."

"Hang on, " she stooped to pick up his cap, "you almost forgot this."

Duke took the cap, but decided not to put it on. Holding her hand, he lead her out of the terminal to the car.

* * *

They ate lunch at a small cafe Duke had discovered in Laclede's Landing few years ago. In truth, he had been on a date at the time; the fact embarrassed him slightly. It had been a blind date set up by his mother, of all people. It hadn't really gone well. G.I. Joe had been revealed to the media a year before, and Duke, to his dismay, had found himself somewhat of a minor celebrity. Being approached constantly had worn thin pretty quickly; spending an entire evening with a woman whose main concern was being seen with him had been a complete bore. Still, the food had been good enough to warrant a return trip or two. Duke was relieved to find the curiosity of the other diners restrained to mere stares and whispers that eventually faded into the background noise of the busy shopping area. They sat on the patio, watching the people and the river flow by.

Scarlett put her knife and fork together at the edge of her plate, and gently dabbed her lips with her napkin before laying it on the table next to her plate, "that was a nice piece of fish," she smiled and leaned back in her chair.

Duke had long since finished his roast chicken and was taking slow sips of a very good local lager, "mmm. Hope you're not too full. My mother's fixing a mess of ribs tonight."

"Real St. Louis barbecue, huh?" she teased him.

"Damn straight. When my mother makes ribs, she doesn't fool around."

Scarlett laughed. Duke watched her eyes twinkle. It made him feel warm inside. He covered her hand with his, rubbing his thumb softly over her smooth skin, "I missed you, Red. Talking on the phone isn't the same as having you here."

Her laugh relaxed into a warm smile. She slid her fingers between his, "I missed you too. The base seems empty without you there."

He looked down at their entwined hands. Hers was soft and creamy. His was rough from years of hard work in the military and at the ranch. Together, they felt right. "You know, stuck on my back in the infirmary, half doped up most of the time..." he didn't look up from her hand, "thinking about you...well, it helped me get through. It was harder when I came home, though. There were days here when I couldn't bring myself to get out of bed. It hurt like Hell, and all I wanted was to see you," she squeezed his hand, "but you weren't here." He felt her touch his cheek and looked up at her.

"I'm here now" her voice was soothing. She knew it wasn't always easy for him to open himself up that way. Duke tended to keep his deeper feelings to himself.

"Yeah. I tried to call you as much as I could. Getting stuck like that...almost drove me nuts. I got on my feet and in shape as fast as I could," Duke had lost a lot of weight in recovery, most of it muscle. It had taken time and pain, and his doctors hadn't approved, but Duke had spent a lot of time and sweat getting his body back to its original condition. Scarlett looked him over and smiled with approval.

"It shows," she slid her hand from his cheek to his shoulder, " you look a little bigger, really. Looks good."

Duke looked down to hide his blush, "I've had a lot of free time, lately. There's a workout area next to my room in the basement. I, uhh, I've been lifting a lot."

She ran her hand lowly across his broad chest. Duke felt his skin tingle under her touch. His reverie was interrupted by the waitress, who snuck up behind him with the bill. The little plastic tray hit the table with a smug clack.

"Right, let's look at the damage," Duke looked at the total.

"Here, let me-" he cut her off with a raised hand.

"I was kidding. My treat, no problem," Duke pulled out his wallet and tossed his credit card on the tray. The waitress swept it up immediately, "I'm supposed to be showing you a good time on your leave."

"I' m here so we can have a good time together, Duke."

Duke smiled at the pictures that brought to mind, "that'll be a treat, too."

"Duke!" Scarlett blushed and laughed, looking to see if the waitress, who was bringing the receipt back for a signature, had heard, or even understood.

He brought her hand to his lips, and kissed it gently, "I missed you, Scarlett," he added a generous tip and signed the receipt with a flourish, "what do you say we head back?"

"Sure, I'm looking forward to seeing everyone again. You know your mother sent me little updates every week?"

"Sounds like Mom, all right," they stood and made their way to the sidewalk. The car was in a parking lot a block away, "Speaking of my mother, she wanted to know.." Duke broke off, uncertain of how to ask. He didn't want to seem too presumptuous; they had spent the night together before, certainly, but usually there was very little actual sleep involved. Weekend passes being what they were, two nights in a row was the longest they had shared a bed. He wasn't sure if they were at a 'one bed for two' stage, and he was afraid to ask. The thought that she might prefer the guest room was a daunting one.

"Duke?"

"Huh?"

"Your mother wants to know what?"

They reached the lot, and began climbing the stairs to the second level.

"Oh...never mind..I'm sure she'll ask you later."

"Oh."

THAT thought scared Duke more than anything.

In the time it took to drive back to the ranch, Scarlett brought him to speed on base happenings.

"...You're kidding me, right?"

"Nope, the whole obstacle course. All that was left was a sort of crater."

Duke grimaced. He had held the speed record on that course since it was built, single handedly holding off all comers, "I'll miss that stupid mud hole the most, I guess. It was nice on the hot days."

"That was thrown into the air, most of it landed on Beach Head" she laughed.

Duke grinned, "you know, I don't mind the guy, myself. But I imagine that made a lot of people's day."

"Your brother took a picture. I though it sort of suspicious that he had a camera, come to think of it."

"Don't . I asked the kid to get me pictures of everyday things on base to keep me in touch with you guys," he left the highway. The scenery had gone from urban, to suburban, to downright rural.

"Exploding obstacle courses aren't everyday base happenings, Duke."

"They are on our base. I imagine Beach Head let Shipwreck have it," he mused.

"Hey, I didn't finish yet. How did you know it was him?"

"Call it a hunch."

"Oh. I guess it isn't too hard to figure out. Hey, where's the Harley? I imagined you'd pick me up on the big beast.," Scarlett had surprised Duke by actually liking his motorcycle. A few years ago, he had taken a long leave, flown home, and spent a little over a week riding it back to base. She demanded a ride, and made a sexy picture sitting on the passenger seat. He'd bought her a leather jacket, supposedly for protection, but really because he thought she looked damn good in it. She certainly got the attention of the other drivers out on the road. He'd ridden it home for Christmas last year, planning another leisurely road trip back to base. A sneak COBRA attack had demanded his speedy return, and the bike once again had taken up residence in the garage, protected by a canvas cover and his mother's proclamation to ground the Hell out of anyone that got within thirty feet of it. Scarlett had been disappointed.

"I couldn't figure out how to get both you and your luggage home on it. I'll take you out for a spin later," he promised.

They drove through the small town of Musicks Ferry. "We'll be there in a bit."

"Nice place," Scarlett sighed as she looks out the window, "must be quite a break from the base."

"Yeah, " Duke turned onto a small road that wound through the trees, "things seem to go at half speed here. Nobody's in any real hurry. Nobody really bothers anyone else."

"How much longer?"

"Well, technically, we're there already. This is my family's land."

" Family's land? You sound like Lady Jaye when she's putting down her parents. You never said you were rich."

"I'm not," the trees were replaced by rolling grassy meadows, "My great, great uncle came over the 1870's. Bought up a huge amount of land. Raised horses. The family has this thing about horses. His brother, my great grandfather, stayed behind in Germany," Duke looked at Scarlett to see if she was following him, "is this boring you?"

"No, go on."

"Well, anyhow, when my great, great uncle died. Oh, hang on. How'd that get there?" Duke stopped the car and hefted a large rock off the road. He climbed back in, and left the car in idle, "kids, I guess. Last year they tried to come up to the house to TP it. My stepfather says he went after them with the shotgun. Look over there," he pointed to a string of horses way off on the horizon.

"Nice. What about your uncle?"

"Oh, sorry. Got side-tracked there." Duke smiled, "well, old Uncle Orman died, and left the land to my great grandfather Jarvis, who had no intention of leaving Germany. Now, my mother's great grandfather was hired to care for of the place, and then her father- you get the idea- for the family which still lived in Germany. By the time World War Two rolled around, my grandfather Sebastian had inherited it, and he sent all 10 of his kids, my father being the oldest, to America. Sebastian hated Hitler, you know. Couldn't stand bigots. He figured something big and nasty was headed for Germany, and sent his kids here. My father caused a scandal by marrying my mother when she was really young. A little over a year later I came along. And there you have it," he watched as the horses came towards the fence.

"So the who owns the land?"

"My grandfather. Still lives in Germany, by the way. He' s a pretty tough character. Shows no sign of going anywhere anytime soon."

"Sounds familiar," Scarlett mused, "what about all your uncles and aunts?"

"Most of them are here. Max, Rolf, Leo, Henry, Willy, Bern, and Adler and my father divided the land into parcels and built houses and outbuildings and the like. Winnifred lives in town; she has a little coffee and pastry shop there. Marlena, the baby, worked on something for the government. She disappeared some time after my father died. They never could convince Grandpa Sebastian that she died in an accident. Says he knows she's out there somewhere."

"And when your Grandfather dies?"

Duke felt embarrassed, "well, it may come to me, I guess. Doubt I'll have any time to enjoy it. I'm not rich, Scarlett. I don't want to be. My family lives on the land, and makes a little money with the horses, and whatnot. If I do inherit the land, I'll own it in name, but I'd never sell it, or force the family off. They're, well, family. When Dad died, they all got together to take care of me."

"They let your mother stay in your father's house?"

"They love my mother. They'd never abandon her, or me, I guess."

"Even when she remarried?"

"Well, we moved around a bit for a few years when Jack was still in the army. Then he retired and we moved back. They all like Jack. Vincent, Jennifer and Drew, too. They're all part of the family. Ready to see them again?" Duke waved at the road ahead and moved to put the car in gear. She caught his hand.

"In a bit."

Scarlett leaned over and pulled him into a kiss. He gave in eagerly, and wrapped his arms around her to guide her into his lap. Eventually, they parted. Looking into her eyes he saw a familiar sparkle that excited him. He turned off the ignition, and held her to him again.

* * *

The car was too hot and cramped to allow any serious lovemaking. Duke smiled happily as he straightened his shirt and started the engine. He was already imagining ways to finish what they started. Scarlett did her best to neaten her hair while looking in the vanity mirror.

"That was fun," she smiled at him.

Duke caressed her thigh and grinned, "you torture me, Red. It's going to be impossible for me to look at you all day and not be able to do to you the things I'm right this minute thinking about." he squeezed her knee.

She blushed deeply, "Duke...You're not usually like this."

"Yeah...well. You know what they say about absences," Duke guided the car the rest of the way to the house. He heard the door slam as he parked. Drew made it across the driveway before he could even shut off the engine. She threw open the passenger door.

"Hey Scarlett!"

Scarlett slid out of the car and gave Drew a hug, "Good to see you again! How are you?"

Drew smiled, "Great!"

"Have you been practicing those katas I showed you?"

"Yep, " she led Scarlett up to the porch, where Duke's mother stood to greet them. "I have those pictures I took on base, I'll go get them!" Drew pounded up he stairs.

Duke lifted the bag from the trunk, shaking his head. His mother greeted Scarlett with a hug, "You look wonderful, dear. I hope the flight was a good one."

Scarlett sighed, "Good and short. The seats seem to get more cramped every year."

"Well, you're here now. Why don't you come on in and sit down? I'll find us all something cold to drink," she ushered Scarlett through the screen door, "I'm sure you're right about ready for a rest and something refreshing." Duke followed them inside.

"That sounds wonderful, Mrs. Falcone."

"Now, dear, call me Jane. 'Mrs. Falcone' makes me sound so old," Duke rolled his eyes. His mother' youth often came as a surprise to his friends. She looked even younger than she was. She always put it down to clean living and country air, "Conrad, you should probably put that in Scarlett's room, whenever you figure out where that will be. Please have a seat, dear."

"Oh, wherever you can put me is fine," Scarlett sat on the couch and smiled.

"We hadn't quite decided what you'd prefer," Duke's mother called over her shoulder on the way to the kitchen. Duke felt the heat rush up the back of his neck. Scarlett looked at him questioningly.

"Ahhh...well...you see...Mom wasn't sure weather you would prefer the guest room...or..." he felt his cheeks grow hot.

"Is there a problem with the guest room?"

"Oh no, not at all," Duke's mother returned with a tray of iced tea, "I could have it ready for you in a jiff. I just thought you might prefer staying together,"

Suddenly, Duke found it easier to look anywhere but at Scarlett or his mother. He stood in the doorway, holding Scarlett's bag and glancing about. When he could finally bring himself to look at her, he saw a rosy glow brightening her cheeks. Duke's mother seemed to be the only comfortable person in the room. She smiled at him, waiting for an answer. He looked helplessly at Scarlett. "Yeah..well...whatever you want is fine with me."

"You'll probably end up there anyway, if you can stand the beard," Drew pushed past Duke and flopped down on the couch with a large photo album.

"Drew!"

"But his goatee is all scratchy, Mom."

"Not that, dear. You know what I mean," Duke's mother looked more angry than embarrassed.

"It's true. She probably will," Drew shrugged

"I think I'll put this away and go feed the horses," Duke backed out of the room and made a hasty retreat. Not knowing what to do with Scarlett's bag, he dropped it by the stairs and made it out the back door before anyone could stop him. As he strode to the stable, he could hear the conversation drift out the living room window.

"What's up with him?"

"It's surprising to hear you talk that way, Drew. I don't know where you learn these things."

"It's OK," Scarlett's laugh bubbled across the yard, "I've never seen him look like that."

Duke found refuge in the warm, alfalfa sweetened stable. He loaded the hay racks and poured oats into the feed pans, managing to lose himself in work and deaden his embarrassment. Wally reached over his stall door and whickered softly to get his attention. Duke smiled as he rubbed the fresian's soft nose. "Well, Hoss, that was a graceful exit." Wally nibbled gently at his fingers. "Not exactly my best moment. It's not a conversational skillI've practiced, discussing my sex life with my mother and kid sister. Must've looked like an idiot," Wally lowered his head so Duke could scratch his ears. Duke again thought of the surprised look on Scarlett's face, "What a mess."

"Looks pretty clean to me."

Duke turned to see Scarlett standing behind him, "What?"

"This is one of the cleanest stables I've been in. But then, I guess that's no real surprise, considering who's in charge of it," she smiled.

"Oh. Yeah, I like everything in order," Duke leaned back against Wally's stall, hoping nonchalance would erase her memory of his discomfort.

The stallion destroyed the effect by mouthing his hair. Scarlett laughed. "Hey!" Duke gave the horse a gentle push.

"So this is Wally, huh?"

"Waldemar's Mountain Thunder. Waldemar, Scarlett, Scarlett Waldemar."

Scarlett stepped forward and offered Wally a lump of sugar. He ate it noisily and happily snuffled her hand. "Pleased to meet, you, Waldemar," she giggled as the fine hair on his nose tickled her palm, "or do you prefer Wally?"

"You can call him whatever you want, if you keep giving him those."

Wally reached over his stall door and inspected her shirt pocket hopefully.

"Your mother said sugar was my ticket into his heart," Scarlett stroked the Wally's neck. Duke wrapped his arms around her waist and gently pulled her back into him. He nuzzled her ear.

"I'm the same way."

Without turning, she reached up and caressed his cheek. "Oh, you are, are you?"

He moved slowly down her neck to her shoulder, "I like a little sweetness, now and again," he tightened his grip around her, and gently nibbled at the base of her neck.

"I see. You're hoping I can help you with this like?" She gasped as he slid back up to her ear.

"More of a craving," he began to explore her with his hands.

"Wasn't earlier enough for you?" her voice had grown husky.

Duke growled in answer and turned her to face him. Burying his fingers in her thick hair, he pulled her lips to his. She met his kiss, eagerly, and returned it with passion. He grabbed her hips and pulled her to him firmly; he could feel her heart pounding. He felt her arms wrap around his neck, fingers teasing at its nape.

"REALLY, you guys..."

Duke spun around quickly to see Drew silhouetted in the large doorway. She shook her head in mock disgust, "Jennifer said you'd be like this, but I held out hope. And in front of innocent children, too."

"As if there's anything innocent about you, Rabbit."

Drew came close enough for Duke to see her roll her eyes, "Anyhow... you said we could all go for a ride."

"I remember saying something of the sort."

"How about now? Do you want to ride around a bit, Scarlett?"

Scarlett looked around the barn, "Sure, sounds like fun, although its been years since I've been in a saddle."

Duke rubbed her shoulder, "I'll put you on Misty over there. She's a gentle ride. All you do is point her the right way and let her take over."

"Good enough for me."

Drew grinned and scampered off to saddle and tack up her horse. Duke looked at Scarlett with an appraising eye and led her into the tack room. "I think you'll do well in that saddle over there," he pointed to a tree on the far wall.

"Looks comfy enough," Scarlett hefted the saddle. Duke threw a blanket over the top and hung a bridle over the pommel.

"Oh, you'll be sore in the morning, no matter what. You always are, after the first ride. It'll fade as you get used to it." Duke collected his own tack.

"What's behind that?" Scarlett nodded at a door protected by a large padlock.

"Parade saddles. We have a few for the town Fourth of July parade and the County Fair." Duke walked back out into the stable.

She followed him, "Why the extra lock? I see that the tack room is already locked here."

"You've seen the saddles in the Rose Parade? These are like that; dripping with silver. They're pretty old and cost a fortune." Duke slung his saddle over a rail. He grabbed the bundle out of Scarlett's arms and slung it alongside, "I'll take care of Wally first, and then I'll show you what to do with Misty," He grabbed a grooming box and halter and went in to get the stallion.

Duke decided to give her a quick tour of the nearby land; through the little woods, up to the river, across the meadow and back. Drew chatted to Scarlett nonstop.

"...and so I told them that you'd shown me some moves and they didn't believe me! I had to show them. Robby Mathis was really surprised. It was great, he'd been SUCH a jerk. He really deserved it."

"You didn't hurt him, did you?" Scarlett sounded surprised.

"Not too badly. I didn't mean to actually kick him, but my foot sort of slipped. Still, it definitely made an impact. More than the one on his head, I mean. You could tell, he was impressed. So then I showed them...

Duke turned Wally to lead them home. Scarlett pulled Misty to a halt and pointed at a small trail that meandered the other direction, "Wait a bit, what's over there?"

Drew sucked in her breath, "That goes to the old quarry."

"So let's go there. It sounds interesting," Scarlett called to Duke. He stopped Wally, but didn't turn him.

"No, it's getting close to dinner."

"Surely it won't take more than a few minutes, Duke. I'd like to see it."

He couldn't face her. "We should get back."

"Come on, Duke, it sounds like a great place to look around. An old rocky quarry- craggy, filled with water...is it filled with water, Drew?"

Drew nodded quickly, but she looked nervous.

"I don't go there," Duke's fingers tightened on the reins until his knuckles turned white.

"Why not? What's wrong with a quarry?"

"I don' go there, ever," he urged Wally forward. He felt cold needles going down his back-he had to get away. Slowly, he moved off down the trail, listening to Scarlett and Drew as they followed.

"What is it about the quarry, Drew, that bothers him so much?"

Drew looked down at her horse, "I'm not really supposed to say."

"Something bad happened there?"

"Well.."

Duke stopped Wally and reigned him around to face Scarlett, "I don't go there. I can't go there." She looked confused.

"But it's just a quarry, Duke."

"My father was murdered there. I watched him die."


	2. Chapter 2

Duke wrestled with the past in his head. Scarlett decided to wait for a more private time to breech the subject. Drew had learned from past experience that her half-brother was best left alone in certain situations, and this was definitely one of those times. Duke felt confident that he could rely on her to keep out of it.

He glanced over at Scarlett and tried a smile, "care for a gallop back to the stables?" Her eyes were afire, her lips a thin line. His smile wavered, he knew that look. Crap. She wasn't going to let him off that easy. "Look, Red, I can see you're mad. It's just not something..."

"Last one back does the dishes!" Drew kicked her horse and galloped down the trail into the trees.

"How do I make Misty go, Duke?"

Off the hook. For now. "Snap the reins and give her a little tap. She'll follow Wally, anyhow. You might want to sort of crouch a little in the stirrups, though. Hang on to her mane if you nee-," Misty was off before he finished, Scarlett whooping all the way.

Duke kicked Wally into a gallop and caught up to her. She seemed to be holding on pretty well. The trail was wide enough that he could keep level with her. Thinking about it, he wished he's just asked her to ride double with him. Any excuse to have her grab onto him. He'd managed it pretty easily in Alaska on a dogsled, Cossacks be darned. He jumped Wally over a log and turned to be sure Scarlett made it. Misty was a gentle mount, but not exactly a jumper. She managed to clear the log with no problem, and Scarlett hung on all the way over.

Through the woods and back over the east pasture they galloped. Duke pushed Wally faster, and the stallion overtook Drew's mare right before the stables. Scarlett brought up the rear on Misty, pulling her to an inelegant but serviceable stop. She laughed as she dismounted and slid to the ground, "I guess I'm stuck with the KP duty tonight."

"Not alone, shatzie, I'll help out," Duke slid down Wally's side and grabbed his and Misty's reins to lead them in, "come on, and I'll show you how to rub her down and put up your tack." The stable was dim and cool compared to the bright hot day outside. He put halters on both horses and secured them to hooks in the wall. Next to him, Drew unsaddled Blaze and brought out her grooming box.

Drew grabbed a brush and curry-comb and set to work on Blaze's flanks. The mare regarded him with soulful eyes. They seemed to look at him with pity and more than a little recrimintation. Duke snorted and turned back to Wally. The stallion was giving him the same look.

"Dammit. Fuck." Duke cursed under his breath as he leaned over to loosen is girth. "Why do you guys have to be so God-damned soulful all the time?" Wally responded by reaching over and nibbling his hair. "Stupid horse," he stood and patted him lovingly, "you're not supposed to be able to make me feel this guilty."

Duke pulled the saddles and blankets off both Misty and Wally, stowed them away on their trees in the tackroom, hung up the bridles and grabbed his own box. He handed Scarlett a brush and showed her how to brush and curry Misty dry and clean. While she brushed both horses, he grabbed a hoof pick and checked them both for stones. She was finishing up with Wally when he was done. Drew had already finished, put Blaze in her stall and gone back to the house to help with dinner. Scarlett dropped the brush back in the box and stroked Wally's flank lovingly.

"That's it, Red," he stood behind her and ran his hand gently from her shoulder to her lower back. He heard her sigh at his touch, and leaned close to her ear, "everyone likes to be caressed now and again."

She turned to face him, stepping close to lay one hand on his chest and another on his cheek. He ran his hands over her shoulders, down her back, and to her hips. His heart started to pound as her fingers trailed lightly down from his chest and over his stomach, coming to rest on his belt buckle.

"You don't say, Top," she slowly traced the path back up over his chest and to his shoulder, bringing the hand that had been resting on his cheek down to the other side, "how's this for a start?"

Duke felt himself stiffen, and he hungrily pulled her hips to him and nuzzled her ear eagerly. Sliding his hands back from her hips to her rear, he held her to him and squeezed, "Red," he growled and nipped her ear lobe. He was breathing hard; her perfume, her nearness, _she _made his head spin.

"Conrad," she murmured, "Conrad, it's been so long."

That did it. Few things pushed him over the edge of control, but hearing his name on her lips, his actual name, qualified as a ringer. He rarely heard it from anyone else. He didn't _want_ to hear it from anyone else. She only said it when they were alone and intimate. He leaned down and kissed her deeply, roughly.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and returned his kiss with passion, fingers playing with the short hair at the nape of his neck. He let his tongue dance with hers as he slid a hand up to stroke a breast. She moaned into his mouth and arched into him. Duke slid a hand up her back and into her hair, pulling it loose so he could slide her tresses through his fingers. He reluctantly abandoned her lips to bite her shoulder and nibble his way up her neck and back to her ear, where he growled again.

"You know what I want, Red. Shana, I can't wait anymore," he backed her up against a stall door, pressing against her with his full body, knowing she could feel how excited he was-hoping it excited her, too. Wally stomped and whickered behind him. Duke held her face in his hands and kissed her deeply again. He wanted to take her right there and then, to feel her against and around and under him. He reached down and pulled her leg up and held it around him, his other hand returning to caress her breast. Her arms slid under his and up to his strong shoulders. She kissed her way back to his neck and murmured into him, "take what you want, Duke. I want you to."

He couldn't help moaning. He'd been fantasizing about hearing her say those words for weeks. His hands shook as he eagerly unbuttoned her shirt and slid his fingers inside. He was addicted to those soft breasts and how they felt as he caressed and squeezed; how her nipples hardened under his fingertips. Her hands returned to his belt buckle and slowly unfastened it. He slid her shirt back off her shoulders and nipped along her collarbone, filling each hand with a breast again as quickly as he could.

"Conrad, Scarlett, time for-oh my God! I'm so sorry!"

Duke looked over his shoulder in time to see his mother back hurriedly out of the stable and turn around to face away from them. He felt his neck burn. Embarrassed, he pulled away from Scarlett, buckled his belt and adjusted himself in his jeans. She rebuttoned her shirt. Her eyes twinkled mischievously at him as she gathered her hair and pulled it back into a ponytail.

"I came to tell you both that dinner's just about on the table," Duke's mother called through the large open doorway. She didn't turn around,"I suppose you've now decided where Scarlett's sleeping, Conrad?"

Scarlett laughed and rubbed his shoulder.

"Yeah, sure," he gazed down lovingly at her, "she's staying with me."

Scarlett's blue eyes smiled into his. She reached up and scratched his chin through his goatee, "If I do, _this_ is going to have to go. It's dashing, but scratchy."

"Whatever you want, Red." Shaving was a small price to pay for night upon night alone with this amazingly captivating woman.

Duke went to put Misty and Wally in their stalls while Scarlett went with his mother to the house. He needed a few minutes to cool down and try to get everything back to normal. _That was a nice romp, _he thought to himself, _too bad Mamma had to walk in. _Both horses happily allowed themselves to be shut in and eagerly waited while he poured each a helping of oats. _Plus, I've gotten her mind off the quarry._

Duke congratulated himself on successfully integrating one Hell of a makeout session with distracting her from forcing him back into a past he found too painful to bear.

The smell of ribs drifted through the door, making Duke's stomach rumble.

* * *

Duke belched as discreetly as possible into his napkin. "Pardon"

"Eew." Jennifer grimaced.

"Yeah, Duke. Really." Drew's face was covered with a layer of barbecue sauce. Duke wondered how she could have gotten it in her eyebrows.

"I said 'pardon', ladies. You'll just have to excuse me."

"I should say so," Drew shook her finger at him accusingly, "_I_ could do better than that!" To demonstrate, she let out a thunderous belch. Duke applauded. _Cute kid_.

Jennifer wasn't so impressed, "Drew, that was one hundred percent disgusting. Mother, how can you let her get away with that?"

"I didn't say I did, dear. Jack?"

"Drew, you've just earned KP for the week. You can start tonight." Jack dispensed judgement from the head of the table.

"But it's Jennifer's turn!"

"Not anymore. Your sister has abstained from serenading us at the table in such a fashion," Jack dabbed the corners of his mouth with a napkin.

"Duke did it first," Drew muttered darkly.

"Your brother managed to excuse himself afterwards. Besides, he's an adult."

"Yeah, and you can't push him around anymore." Drew addressed her plate.

"Three weeks."

"Mom!"

"Don't look to me, young lady. You know better than to talk back to your father." Jane stacked her plate with Scarlett's and lay the dirty flatware on top.

"Duke!" Drew looked desperate.

"I'd get started if I were you, Rabbit." Duke pushed his chair back, "Tell you what-because I sounded the first horn, allbeit somewhat more quietly, I'll give you a hand. You wash, I'll clear."

Defeated in from all corners, Drew slid off her chair and stormed off into the kitchen, stopping to glare at Jennifer on the way. "Morphodite."

Jennifer got up and pushed her chair in, "I'll not grace that with a reply, Drucilla."

"That's _not_ my name and you _know_ it!"

Jennifer smiled and left the dining room. Drew stopped herself from saying what could have possibly kept her washing dishes until college and stomped into the kitchen.

Duke got up to clear the table, chuckling, "Great being home. You don't get entertainment like this back on base. Well," he stopped and stood thoughtfully, plate and glass in hand, "I take that back. I deal with stuff like that all the time. This time, though, it's someone else's problem. That makes it fun." He grabbed a few more plates, hefted the pile, and backed through the swinging door.

Jack laughed aloud and ran his fingers through his silvering hair, "The hardest part of parenting is keeping a straight face."

Scarlett smiled, "I can imagine. My brothers and I must have driven my father crazy, but when he talks about it, he laughs himself to tears."

"The boys were almost as bad," Jane wiped a few crumbs into her hand and brushed them into a glass, "Conrad was so much older, they really didn't have much in common. I don't think I really ever heard them fight much, though until Vincent turned sixteen."

"Oh, they argued," Jack's eye twinkled as he rested his chin on his knuckles, "It never really lasted long. Conrad would just pick his brother up whenever he was too much of a problem and toss him somewhere convenient. That was usually the end of it. It's just that eventually, Vince got too big to throw so easily. Things got a bit more noticeable then." He laughed. "Fortunately, by then Conrad was old enough to not get into it so often. Besides, he was out of the house before then, really."

"Was it hard, such an age gap between Duke and the others?" Scarlet asked. "Not to pry, but other people's families are always more interesting than your own."

"Oh, It's not prying. I know what you mean," Jane patted her husband's arm and smiled at the memories, "actually Conrad has helped a lot, when he's able. It's more like having a third parent around now and again. They listen to him when we don't seem to get through. Add to that the fact that he still loves horsing around with them in ways we can't. Sometimes, I wish he were here more often. I really do."

"Me too," Duke came back through the door and began grabbing empty glasses. He kissed his mother on the cheek.

"You do, dear?"

"Of course . Naturally. What am I agreeing to?"

"You don't know?" Jane looked up at her son. His shirt was soaked. "Why are you all wet?"

"Just trying to stay part of the conversation. It's water. Rabbit's a madwoman with that sprayer."

Jack chuckled, "Just make sure she mops the floor up. This isn't supposed to be fun for her."

"Yessir. No fun." Duke backed again through the door and into the kitchen.

"He and Drew seem to get along well. Better than with Falcon." Scarlett nodded towards the door.

"She's his favorite. He can baby her, and she worships him. The boys have never been on the same page. When Vincent got older, he was very angry at his brother a lot of the time. After Vietnam, Conrad wasn't the same, he drank a little...he fought a lot... and Vincent was old enough to notice the change-he had to endure some of the drinking... But he wasn't old enough to really understand it. It wasn't easy to watch his older brother go through such a nightmare. Conrad withdrew from all of us for a long time to figure things out. Vincent wanted the same boisterous big brother he had always idolized, and that just wasn't there. Conrad was too different. Vincent couldn't understand why, not until recently. I think, for a long time, he blamed Conrad. Then again, I always thought perhaps Conrad resented Vincent."

"Why?"

"He got the childhood Conrad never had. It was very hard on him when his father died. Jack's always done the best he could to support him, but it's just not the same. Conrad just had to grow up faster. It was a terrifying thing for a little boy to have to go through." Duke came through the swinging door unnoticed and stood quietly listening to this last revelation. He found himself caught between wanting to spill his gut and the need to shut them all up. Instead, he slipped back through and listened from the other side.

Jack put his hand over his wife's lovingly. "He was a tough kid and never seemed to let it bother him."

Jane smile grew tight, "oh, but I think it did bother him. I think it bothered him a lot. Vietnam made it harder-it nearly broke him. Madeline made it worse. Conrad survived, and is a very strong man; but I doubt he sleeps through most nights. I wouldn't change my life for a minute, but I often wonder what things would be like today if Sebastian were still alive. I know Conrad does as well." A tear ran down the side of her face. Jack stood up and moved behind her to rest his hands on her shoulders. Jane leaned he head back against him, "It's OK, dear. Remembering keeps him alive to me, in some way."

Scarlett couldn't help but be curious, "Do you mind if I ask what happened?"

"Of course not. It's perfectly natural to wonder. It's not a secre-"

Duke's gut drove him into the dining room to interrupt, "I promised you a ride on the bike, Red. Why don't we go into town for a nightcap? Drew can finish without me."

"Sure, Duke." Scarlett looked up guiltily.

"Should I move Scarlett's bag into your room while you're out, dear? Or will that not be necessary?"

Duke reddened quickly. Jack raised his eyebrows in amusement and recited "Six foot two he stood from the ground. Weighed two hundred and thirty five pounds. Saw this giant of a man brought down by love."

"Yeah..well..of course. I mean…Naturally. Plenty of room. We'll need extra pillows, I guess, and… ahhhhhhh. Why don't we go on that ride now?" he made his escape to the garage. Scarlett waved as he towed her by the hand out of the room.

Jane stood up and kissed her husband. He grinned at her, "Yes ma'am. Hardest part's keeping a straight face."

Duke opened the door to the garage and paused. It was a chilly night, "Do you have your jacket, Red?"

"Sure, it's in my bag. I was hoping you'd get me on the beast sometime soon. I couldn't find my helmet, though." They walked towards a canvas shroud in the back.

"You left it strapped to the sissy bar. Last road trip, it came home with me. Matter of fact, I just left it strapped there, hoping some hot redhead would ask me for a ride." Duke

"Any takers?"

"An Irish setter chased me about a block a few days ago."

Scarlett laughed "Was it hot?"

"She was panting, anyway. I'm told I have that effect on women." Duke grinned at her as he walked around the bike and back to the shelves where he kept his gear. Helmets, gloves, boots, and even a hook for his jacket. Too dark for glasses-he'd have to risk the bugs. Better grab a bandanna.

"Yeah, you can be pretty tiring sometimes, Hauser." Scarlett chuckled.

His eyes twinkled merrily, "I'll tire you out later. Go grab your jacket we can get going." He watched her jog back into the house. _Hot damn_. It was a nice sight. Some boys in the bar would be jealous tonight. The thought of having Scarlett all to himself for the rest of the evening put Duke back in better spirits. He carefully uncovered the bike and stowed the canvas on the shelf. Siting on a nearby stool, he changed out of his sneakers and into well-worn leather boots that would protect his feet from the rough road and hot pipes. It was almost time for a new pair. He slid into his black jacket and went to inspect the bike.

Scarlett flounced back into the garage-jacket already on. "How do I look?"

"Shoot, I'd better bring me a gun to keep 'em off you." Duke nodded approvingly.

"You think? I decided to change into another pair of jeans and a different shirt. These go better with the jacket."

"Those go better with everything. Give me a three-sixty."

Scarlett twirled. Her hair, tied back in its habitual ponytail, swung jauntily over her shoulder. Duke stood up and trapped her in his arms.

"Too cute for words-decent ones, anyway. Ready to go?"

Scarlett caught sight of the bike and gasped, "You repainted it! It's gorgeous!"

Duke swelled with pride, "Yeah, well, she was getting a bit faded, and I figured why not? So I took a chunk of my savings and went for the airbrush job. I've got a friend close by who owed me one and gave me a break on the price. You really like it?"

Scarlett ran a finger slowly over the gas tank, tracing the outline of the electric blue flames that licked the gleaming black base. "It's like a whole new bike."

"In a way." He unstrapped her helmet from the sissy bar and tossed it to her, "Ready to go?"

Scarlett buckled the helmet under her chin and gave him a thumbs up. Duke swung his leg over the saddle, slid the key in the ingnition and hefted the bike upright. Pulling the choke, he flicked the engine kill switch to 'on' and pushed the starter button. The bike roared into life. He waited a minute and pushed the choke back in. The engine settled to a rumbling purr. Steadying the bike with both legs, Duke buckled on his own helmet and pulled on his gloves. He turned to Scarlett.

"Jump on, Red."

She swung on behind him and wrapped both arms firmly around his waist. Putting the bike into gear, he rode out of the garage and into the night.


	3. Chapter 3

*OK, i's been about 10 years since a completely new chapter was up for this one. Sorry. Just a little note. It gets "mature".*

They rumbled down the long drive and out to the main road. Duke took the corner fast, and felt her arms tighten around his waist. He smiled to himself.

_Still playing the old tricks. Because no matter how long she's been yours, it still thrills you when she holds you tighter._

It didn't take long to get to Mikey's. Duke had been hanging out in that old dive since he was legally able to drink. Well, maybe a bit before, to tell the truth. He rolled into the parking lot and backed the bike into a space. Scarlett dismounted and took her helmet off while he kicked down the stand and let the bike over. He killed the engine and took off his own helmet, hanging it over the handlebars. She handed him hers, and he strapped it back to the sissy bar. Swinging a leg over and rising off the bike, he offered her his hand.

"Shall we, Red? I could use a beer or two."

Scarlett took his hand, and then pulled it over her shoulder and snuggled up next to him. "Why not? Do they have anything in there you'd stoop to drinking? Or is it the normal swill you despise?" He smile teased at his heart.

"Cute, O'Hara. I can't help having standards. Fortunately, a bar in a small town with a disproportionate number of German immigrants would fail utterly if it didn't serve drinkable beer." He guided her towards the door. A jukebox could be heard working to be heard over the random jabber of voices inside, as well as the snicks of pool balls colliding.

"Trust Germans to come up with a beer purity law."

Duke laughed. "Germans have a law for everything. No washing your car on Sunday, no noise at all between one and three in the afternoon, and don't you dare tune your piano at midnight."

"You're kidding me." She shook her head.

"No, it's true. You can get a fine for running out of gas on the Autobahn. So, yeah, a beer purity law fits right in." They walked up the short flight of steps to the patio. A few people lounged at the tables, smoking.

"Any other freaky German laws I should know about?"

"Pillows are passive weapons."

She looked at him dubiously, "Really?"

"I shit you not."

"Now you _are _kidding me."

He laughed an opened the door for her, letting the music inside escape loudly into the night air. "Nope, it's all true." He leaned down to nuzzle her ear as she walked into the bar, "I'll show you later, if you'd like." He felt her fingers reach up and caress his cheek and chin.

"Mmm, I bet you will. When are you shaving that all off?" She took his hand again and led him across the room and towards the bar.

Looking around, Duke saw quite a few heads turn as men assessed her. They had reached the bar, and she slid onto an open stool. He knew exactly what thoughts were flittering behind each pair of lustful eyes. He had considered the same things the first time he saw her fling a squid across a gym at Parris Island. It was complex, but pretty much everything could be summed up as: _hot damn! _

The odd part was that, in getting to know her, Duke discovered Scarlett had absolutely no idea the effect she had on men. She just seemed utterly ignorant of her power over them. This had had benefits and drawbacks. It was outrageously sexy to Duke that Scarlett seemed so unaware of her true beauty. She never once used it as a way to manipulate, since she had no idea she could. Then again, Duke often had to shove jealousy down as he watched her with other men. From Cover Girl, it might be flirting. With Scarlett, she was just genuinely interested in what they had to say. More than one guy had taken it the wrong way, and Duke had to restrain a natural country boy desire to pound the living daylights out of each and every one of them. She didn't like it when he got jealous.

Casting a few glances out of the corners of his eyes at the current mob of droolers, Duke planted himself right behind her and put a hand on the bar either side of her. The bartender, an older woman of a comfortable size, smiled as she greeted them.

"Well, Conrad Hauser, I see you've finally decided to bring the little lady who managed to melt your stubborn fool heart of yours." She set a brimming glass full of golden brew in front of him. "Don't think I don't already know what you want already, Con." She turned to Scarlett. "Good to meet you. Call me Mikey. Whaddlya have?"

Scarlett smiled. "Call me Scarlett. I'll have a glass of whatever white wine you've got. _You're _Mikey? So this is your bar?"

"Oh, yes ma'am. Inherited it from my Daddy back in 1970. Had to change the name, though. It was named after him before I got it, and he was an absolute bastard." She grabbed a bottle from the cooler behind the bar, filled a wineglass, tossed out a beer mat and set it in front of Scarlett.

"What was his name?" Scarlett took a sip

"Leslie."

Scarlett had to stop herself from laughing out a mouthful of wine.

Duke took a large swig and sucked suds out of his moustache. "He wasn't _that _bad, Mikey."

"You just like him because he let you come in and get shattered when you were seventeen. And sixteen. And fifteen, if I remember rightly."

Duke dodged Scarlett's eyes and found escape in another swig. Glancing over her head, he caught the man next to her looking down her shirt appraisingly.

"Watch it, pal." Duke stood up to his full height and clenched a fist at his side. He snarled. The man got up and moved to a stool farther down the bar.

"Now Beauford, you just know better." Mikey chided him as he left.

"Duke," Scarlett remonstrated, "honestly, you don't have to _do _that. You know I can take care of myself."

Duke wrapped an arm around her and pulled her back into him, he growled quietly into her ear, "_Mine." _

Her laughter was like music. "Stop being such a caveman, Duke." He could see from the twinkle in her eyes; she had enjoyed that. They'd been apart a long time.

"He's not," Mikey wiped the bartop with a clean rag, "the Duke Hauser I remember from two years ago would have just hauled off and socked him. You've really calmed him down, haven't you?"

Duke was glaring down the bar at Beauford. He heard Scarlett laugh. "_This_ is calm?"

"He's cleared this bar out on a few occasions. He may not always start them, but he always finishes them." Mikey nodded at someone who had come up behind them. "Well, hey, you two, that's good timing. Look who's here, Conrad."

Duke turned to find Jeff and Sandy behind him. He eagerly took his arm from around Scarlett and shook Jeff's hand. "Jeff! Sandy! I hoped you'd show up!" He pulled Jeff in and slapped his back solidly. Jeff coughed. He wasn't a big man. "Hey, Red, you gotta meet Jeff and Sandy!"

"Sure, Duke." She waved at them both. "Hi!"

Sandy sat on the stool Beauford had so recently abandoned, "This is Scarlett. About time, Con. I figured you were making the whole thing up." Sandy was a short ash blonde with a light build and impressively intelligent eyes. "I'm Sandra Margolis, but everyone calls me Sandy. Whether I like it or not." She grinned. "This is my husband, Jeff."

"Hey there." Jeff Stood behind Sandy and reached out a skinny arm to shake Scarlett's hand. Jeff's long brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail behind his head. Duke gave it a pull.

"When're you gonna cut this mop, Jeff. You look like a hippie."

"Cute, con. Mom says I look like a Viking."

"Your mother wears glasses thicker than yours." Duke finished his beer and held up two fingers and a thumb. "Three more, Mikey!" He turned to Scarlett, " Ready for another wine?"

"Oh no, I'm savoring this one. Don't want to go too fast. I want to be sober for later." She winked at him.

Jeff laughed, and Duke found himself puffing his chest out subconsciously.

"So," Scarlett took a sip from her savored wine, "you all know each other from way back."

"Oh yeah! I've known Jeff since we were kids." Duke wrapped his arm back around Scarlett from behind. "Remember when I couldn't remember where the Cobra Fortress was after I'd gotten out…back when we were tangled up with the M.A.S.S. device? Doc put me in that sensory deprivation tank in my boxers." Duke paused and remembered floating in his underwear in front of an audience of Joes, "God, that was embarrassing. He had to give me a sedative to get me in that thing."

Duke was quiet, lost in the memory of the oddly warm water and the strange sensation of lightness. Scarlett finally leaned into him and tapped his arm.

"Go on, Duke."

"Oh, yeah, sorry, got lost in the past, there." Duke snuck a sip of his second beer. "Anyhow, remember all the things he had me play back from my brain before we even got to the temple?"

"Of course, not, Duke, I wasn't there. By then I was chained to a wall in a dungeon next to a scantily clad slave girl." Duke felt Scarlett tighten stiffly under his arm. "I _definitely _remember the slave girl. I also remember the way she was wearing your unit ring. I remember quite a few things about her."

Jeff choked on his beer. Duke looked at Scarlett and saw the apocalypse in her eyes. _Fuck, maybe that wasn't a good idea. Proceed with caution, Hauser._

"Uhhhh, yeah, well, that ring helped me find you, you know. Ummm… I thought maybe someone would have told you all the things my head threw out." He did his best to soothe her by tightening his arm and giving her a squeeze. "Anyhow, had you been there, you might have seen my memory of the day I met Jeff." He caressed her belly gently.

"Oh?" Scarlett's hand found his and she slid her fingers between his.

Jeff took up the tale, "Oh, yeah, he peeled a pack of bullies off me. My first day waiting for the bus to a new school, in a new town, and Delph Koch and crew decided to make my morning brighter. I still remember Tubby Johnson kicking my books and clarinet case. He broke my mouthpiece." He absent mindedly reached up and adjusted his glasses. "Next thing I know, someone's knocking Delph around and Tubby and Jimmy took off. It was this golden boy, here." He jerked a thumb at Duke.

"That's Conrad. Defender of the weak and nerdy, bane of bullies everywhere." Sandy laughed.

"Right up till Jack got reassigned, anyhow." Duke remembered what it was like uprooting and bouncing from base to base. _Half my childhood with the horses, the other half on a base._

Sandy took up the tale, "I moved into town while he was away. I was a skinny science nerd. Jeff and I latched on to each other for protection. Con's cousins Willy and Oskar sort of helped, but they weren't as good at it. Neither of them were a match for Delph or Tubby. Those two got _nasty."_

Duke smiled to himself. "Yeah, I guess no one figured I'd be back."

Scarlett interrupted, "is this the same Delph you told me menaced Falcon?"

Duke lifted his glass for another swig, "Same asshole. When Jack got permanent post at Leonard Wood, we moved back home. Vince and Jenn were tiny."

Sandy sighed, "It's tough for new kids in this crazy town. I know that for a fact. When everyone knows each other but they don't know you, things can be difficult for a while."

Jeff joined in "Vince and Jenn were tiny, but _Conrad _wasn't. God, he'd shot up. And out. And Jack had crammed his brawling butt into the boxing ring by then. Me, I stayed a rail. And a target. You," he jabbed a finger in Duke's chest, "you just keep getting _bigger._ Damn me if you aren't bigger now than ever."

"Clean living and plenty of free time to lift weights."

Sandy finished her beer. "Anyhow, he certainly kept Delph and company off our backs. All through high school. Then we all went away to college, and everything was OK."

"Yeah, well, you two stayed at college."

"Conrad," Sandy looked at him sadly, "you didn't have to go. You had a football scholarship."

"I did have to go. Every day, Jack was sending boys off. For a year, I watched them go and felt like a rat-safe since I managed to get into a school because I was in good physical shape, which was what they wanted over in Vietnam." Duke cracked his knuckles. "It didn't feel right. So I left. Jack wanted me to enlist, anyhow."

Scarlett stared quietly into his eyes. He met her gaze and held it. "Duke, do you ever regret it? Do you ever think about going back?"

He ran his fingers down her cheek, "Red, if I'd stayed there, I would have never met you. No, I don't regret it. You can't say I haven't been successful otherwise. As for going back…" Duke sighed, "No. You can never really go back. I was a history major. History, gymnastics and football. Not sure where that would have taken me, but I like where I am just fine."

"So you're going back to _base_? To _Joe?_" Jeff sounded incredulous, "you've never said that. After what happened-"

Duke cut him off. "Of course I'm going _back." _ He turned to Jeff and Sandy. "Was there ever any real question? Just have to undergo a little reassessment. Pass the physical. No sweat." Duke finished the last few drops of his beer and set the glass down. _Like I could ever give anything up. Like I could leave my base to someone else to run._ "Hey Mikey, can I have a glass of water?"

"Sure, Doll, hang on."

"Can you pass, Con?" Sandy sounded concerned.

Duke smiled at her. _Always concerned._ He'd kissed her once, way back when. Someone had asked him why they hadn't ever gotten together, so they'd tried it, just to see. It wasn't bad, but he hadn't felt anything beyond the odd sensation that he was kissing his sister. She told him she felt pretty much the same way. Nothing there. Neither one had told Jeff. He'd been quietly pining for her for years.

"Hell yeah. Jack's been on top of me. We've done more than one test. I can do more than what's required, no problem. And I'm still a mean son of a bitch." Mikey set a glass of icewater in front of him, and he glugged half of it down.

"What about mentally, Con?" Sandy looked into her glass.

"Mentally? What the fuck? I'm stable. Have you ever doubted my head?"

"You want me to be honest?" She turned to Mikey. "Go ahead and set me and Jeff up again, Mike."

Duke began to feel annoyed. "Yeah, I want you to be honest. You think I'm loopy for wanting to go _back_?"

"No, Con, I don't. Your life hasn't been the least stressful I know. This...this injury and the way you've pushed yourself to recover. I watched you when we were over a few times. Pain is there for a reason, Con. You're not supposed to ignore it."

"I've been _trained _to ignore it."

"I saw you push yourself till you _dropped_ more than once in the past year, Con. A few times, you passed right out on the floor. Your mother told me it scared the Hell out of her, how you pushed yourself."

Scarlett looked shocked, "_Duke_…" She put a hand over where the spear had pierced his chest.

"Scarlett, I'm fine. I just had to up my endurance. I'm back in shape." He took her hand in both of his and rubbed. "I'm fine. It wasn't easy, but it's what was necessary. I called up Dr. Blackstone, and she helped me out."

"What? How?"

"I'll tell you later."

Sandy broke in, "But it's not just that, Con. After Vietnam, and Maddy, you were a mess, and when Jack and your mother managed to halfway scrape you together, you took off again, right back into the service." Mikey put two fresh pints in front of Sandy.

"So?"

"You never _dealt _with it, Con. You never _dealt _with Vietnam. Or Maddy and what she did to you. Look, I'm a _fucking psychologist. _Remember that whole me going to college thing? I do know a little about this. When's the last time you've slept through the night? You've never _dealt_ with like you never really _dealt _with what happened to your father."

Duke backed away from them suddenly. "Excuse me, but you'll have to analyze me later. I've gotta go hit the head. Two pints of beer and a pint of water and I've gotta drain out."

Jeff tried to catch him as he turned to go, "Con…wait."

Duke pulled away and walked to the back of the bar and the men's room. Once inside, he found a urinal and unzipped. He stared at the wall.

_God, what the Hell does she mean by that? I'm rock-solid. I've always been rock-solid. _But in his heart, he knew there was more than a little truth to Sandy's words. _When __**was**__ the last time you slept through the night? How often does all the darkness inside surge up and wake you? _He finished, and went to wash his hands. _And she doesn't even know about all the men you've killed…_He yanked out a wad of paper towels and dried them, then tossed the wad into the trash and stood, thinking.

Of course he had nightmares most every night. _You're a goddamn soldier. A 'Nam vet. It would be more insane if you didn't._ He'd only had a few about Serpentor. Only once or twice had the snake-headed spear shot towards him in his sleep. The worst nightmares didn't involve the corpses in 'Nam, or the pain in his chest. The worst ones happened on the edge of the quarry.

_It was a sunny day…_

Duke shook his head, shoved the quarry back down inside, and walked out of the bathroom, past Beauford, who plastered himself against the wall.

_Scarlett takes care of the nightmares. _When she was with him, in his bed, and he woke suddenly in the night, she wrapped herself around him and gently kissed, caressed and murmured comfort to him 'till he slept, or maybe they would make love. Then he would sleep. Occasionally, he would deliberately try to exhaust himself with her…_Scarlett takes good care of me. She's put up with a lot to get close to me, only to run headlong into the wall sealing off the dark places inside me._

She was deep in conversation with Jeff and Sandy. Duke overheard the last snippets as he returned to their spot at the bar.

"…but he never told me he was _murdered._ Not till then. He's never been the easiest to get things out of. But he wouldn't even consider going near the trail."

"He won't. He hasn't set foot there since it happened. 'Course, neither of us knew him then. Happened a couple of years before Jeff even move into town, and I wasn't here till much later. It shocked the whole town." Sandy's voice was gentle, pitying. Duke hated pity.

"But what _happened? _He won't tell me."

"Well…back then there was a lot of racial hatred, and some of the old guard were really having problems with the civil rights movement. Conrad's father, apparently, was singled out as a-"

Duke strode up, wrapped Scarlett up tightly in his arms, and pulled her into a deep kiss. He felt her melt into his arms, and her mouth opened gently to accept him. She sighed.

He parted from her. Sandy and Jeff looked shocked. This wasn't the Conrad they remembered. _Yeah, but it worked. They've stopped talking about it._

"Miss me, Red?" He brushed her hair back with both his hands. Mikey laughed from back behind the bar.

"Conrad Hauser, you are _sprung, _boy."

The look Scarlett gave him let him know she knew what he was up to. She wasn't about to let him get away with it; but she would wait till later to push the issue.

"So, Scarlett," Jeff was well into his second pint, "how long are you in town?"

"Two weeks. I tried to get longer, but that's almost impossible these days."

"Why? I thought Cobra was through?"

"Jeff, I told you they're far from finished." Duke waved to Mikey for a third pint.

Scarlett frowned at him, "You sure you'll be OK to drive the bike back, Top?"

"As long as I keep downing a pint of water per pint of beer. This is a pretty light lager."

"If you're sure." He knew she trusted his judgment. She had to. You couldn't follow a man you didn't trust into battle.

Sandy prompted them, "You were talking about Cobra?"

"They're _not _through." Duke exchanged his empty pint for the full one Mikey brought him. "You shatter something, you still have to sweep up all the shards." He saw Scarlett nodding next to him. "Some of them are easy to find, those are fine. But the _dangerous _pieces end up in dark corners, under things, behind things-hidden. Those are the ones that can cause the most damage. The shards most people don't even see 'till they draw blood."

Scarlett finished her wine and stretched on her barstool. "We never found bodies from a lot of the known Cobra agents. No body means no confirmed kill. We know they're out there, scattered. Intel has already hinted at a few of them sticking their fingers into a few nasty situations. We have to take them out before they re-organize, if we can."

Jeff and Sandy looked at each other, then back at Scarlett and Duke.

Sandy leaned against the back of her barstool.

"That sounds absolutely daunting. And exhausting."

"That's why I have to go back." Duke grinned at Jeff and Sandy over the rim of his glass. "I'm _good _at the daunting, exhausting stuff. I go until I drop, remember? I _like _it. I _like _fighting."

Sandy shook her head. "But you'll risk it...everything you managed to save. You'd go back and face that risk again?"

Duke felt Scarlett's hand on his arm. He looked at his half-full glass. "In a heartbeat. I can't let Red and Vince and all my men keep all the fun to themselves."

"That isn't what I meant…"

"I know what you meant, Sandy. I'm a soldier. I was meant to be a soldier, I firmly believe that. I wasn't drafted, I volunteered, remember? I'm not a loner in this; thousands of men and women like me are out there. We're out there so others don't have to be. I don't do it for glory; I don't give a damn about that."

"You're fine with Vincent being part of it?"

"Fine? I'd have preferred he never enlisted. I didn't watch out for that little maniac his whole life so he could become Uncle Sam's newest bulletstopper. But he did. And, you know, the kid's pretty good. I knew he _would _be, once he got over whatever crawled up his ass and turned his brain off." Duke grumbled into his beer. "At least, now, he's back to where I can keep my eye on him."

"You can't beat up every bully for him, Conrad."

"I think that point was already brought home to me pretty well, Sandy."

"Well, anyhow, if you're here for that long, how would you like to come visit my Orchestra and Band classes?" Duke smiled. For years, Jeff had been the one to get between him and Sandy to restore peace.

Scarlett leapt at the chance to change the subject. "You teach at the local high school, right?"

"That's right, the same one we all went to. But these kids are good. The band has won every competition we've been in, so far. Regionals are next. The orchestra, well, a lot of kids are in both. They're just amazing. The choir would just blow you away, too. Incredible kids."

Sandy laughed and rubbed Jeff's shoulder, "I think a little of the credit should go to their teacher."

"I have three seniors applying to Juliard. They've got a good chance of getting in. As good as any. They'll hear back any day, now. Why don't you come by? I've got our final concert coming up in a week. Your best concert is your worst rehearsal. I figure if you come for a rehearsal, you'll hear us at out best!"

Duke grinned at Jeff's enthusiasm. _Man's a fanatic. Heck, if he can teach me to play guitar and piano when we were kids, he can teach anyone now... Without him, there would be no Average Joe Band. _ They'd started out kind of week, but with the boredom that could infect any soldier in the downtimes between missions, the AJB had found plenty of time to practice.

"Jeff has really brought that music program up from nothing. There are people moving into town so their kids can be part of it." Sandy stood and proudly smiled at her husband.

Sandy and Jeff had surprised everyone by coming back to town after College and finding jobs at Musick's Ferry High. It had surprised everyone more when they married just a little over a year ago, after a very long courtship. Sandy had matured into rather an attractive woman, and was, upon her return, considered a "catch". Jeff grew, but stayed rail-thin and somewhat puny. A good chunk of the town had imagined that a jilted Duke would somehow come back on leave from his self-imposed banishment from town and memories of Maddy to sweep Sandy off her feet. But when on leave, when he took off his brown round to come home, he found himself absolutely not attracted to her, as pretty as she had grown. He could only remember her as the girl who'd slung intestines at the head cheerleader during the pig dissection in biology. He could only think of her as a friend. Somehow, she wasn't what he was looking for. She felt the exact same way about him. They _had _tried the kiss. Utterly devoid of anything…

So Sandy fell for Jeff and Duke wandered into a string of one night stands until he'd managed to set his heart on a tiny redhead with a deadly temper and a distaste of spiders. The one who patiently took all the time required to get next to him. The one who he wanted the first time he saw her. The one he dared gamble a career for, once he got the guts up. The one who was staring at him now.

_Wait, what did she say?_

"Sorry, Red, I was miles away."

"I said, are you sure you're OK to drive me back? It's getting late, and I've had a long day." She gently rested her hands on his chest.

"Yeah, I'm fine. You tired? I keep forgetting you just flew in before lunch." He rubbed her shoulders.

"I wouldn't say no to a comfy bed right now." Her smile was sultry.

Duke's heart skipped a beat, then came back pounding to make up for it. "I think that can be arranged."

"Ahem, ahem." Sandy actually _said _the words. "I think that's our cue to say goodnight, too, Jeff."

"Here, Mikey," Jeff tossed several bills on the bar top. "Keep the change."

Duke moved to pull out his wallet, but Jeff waved him away, "Don't you dare, Con. I may make only a teacher's salary, but it's enough to treat you and your girl to a drink.

"Jeff…"

"Don't argue, I'm paying. That's the end of it."

"Well, thanks, man, I appreciate it."

Scarlett and Sandy had already gone out onto the porch. Jeff slapped Duke on the back.

"I'd get her back quick. I think she likes you."

Duke smiled. "Oh, wow. Maybe I'll get lucky, huh?"

They both laughed and followed the women. Duke and Scarlett said goodbye to both Jeff and Sandy in the parking lot, donned their helmets and jackets and climbed back on the bike. It roared to life and Duke guided it back home, steady as he had been before the first beer.

_Well, almost._

He felt her hands caressing his stomach and his heartbeat kicked back up to a pound. Her head rested against his back. She was warm against him. One hand trailed down to his thigh, and he nearly lost control of the bike.

_She wants me. _ He thrilled at the thought. _She still wants me, after all the mess with the hospital, the blood, the months apart. The tears. The discovery of part of me I don't want to share…she wants me. Oh Hell, oh hot damn, she wants me __**now.**_

It was all Duke could do to park the bike on the drive in front of the house and kick down the stand. He ripped off his helmet and tossed it in the general direction of the handlebars as he dismounted. She was strapping hers back to the sissy bar, tossing her hair. His arousal escalated to lust as he helped her off the bike and pulled her against him. Her lips welcomed him warmly. Her hands crept under his jacket and to his back as he explored her mouth, her neck, her shoulder. She clung to him and murmured into his ear.

"Duke, remember my mention of the comfy bed?"

He growled and gathered her up into his arms. "_Mine."_

She laughed. Music to his ears, "You gonna carry me all the way from here to your bed, you Neanderthal?"

"You're a tiny thing, I'm a big strong Neanderthal. I think I can handle it."

"Right past your family?"

Duke found her lips again as he climbed the steps to the front porch. He spoke through his kiss. "This time of night, everyone's probably in bed already."

"What about the front door? Where are your keys?"

He held her in front of the knob. "Just open it. We never lock the front door."

She turned the knob and pushed the door open. He carried her inside and kicked it shut behind him, slamming it loudly.

"Duke!" Scarlett giggled, "Shhhhhh! You'll wake the whole house."

"Don't care." He raised her up so he could nibble her shoulder again. The den was empty. Someone had left a table lamp on for them. Scarlett reached out and turned it off as he carried her past.

Duke kicked open the swinging kitchen door and carried her to the basement stairs. That door was ajar, and he pushed it open and carefully carried her down the stairs to his room, kicking the basement door shut with his heel. He kicked thedoor to his room shut behind him, dropped a laughing Scarlett on the bed and stood, gazing down at her.

"So, in your efforts not to wake your family, you managed to kick four doors with your boots on."

"God, you're gorgeous. Have I ever told you that?"

"Not recently."

"You're gorgeous."

"So I've heard."

"Breathtaking." He pulled off his boots and socks, hopping on one leg at a time. She laughed again as he bumped into his dresser. "Ow, crap. Stunning. You're a real cute chick."

"Mmmm, now you're buttering me up, Hauser. Could it be you want something?"

Duke loosened his belt and climbed on the bed to kneel next to her. "Definitely." He pulled off her shoes and socks, lightly kissing the tops of her feet. He slid his hands up under the cuffs of her jeans, feeling the soft skin of her legs. "Think I can have it?"

"It depends. Have you been a very good boy, or a very bad one?" She sighed as his hands slid back off her legs and up to undo her jeans. He pulled them off and down and stretched out next to her. She gently caressed his chest through his shirt.

"Which one do you want?" He sat up, pulled off his shirt, lay back and pulled her up over him for a deep kiss. Her mouth was warm and welcoming. He felt her breasts brush against his chest.

"Both." She grinned down at him as his hands fumbled on first the buttons of her shirt, then the catch of her bra.

Duke tossed the garments aside and let his eyes wander over her now naked body. She sat up so he could see more. His hands were soon exploring the path his eyes had blazed. She gently traced the new scar on his chest. He watched as her eyes filled with tears.

"Your poor chest. Look at that. Duke, what did he do to you?"

"Shhhhhh, Red, it's just a scar. I have plenty." He kissed her softly. "That bastard didn't beat me. I'm still here. I'm all yours, Red." Duke caressed her back. "We're still together. I've been wanting you in this bed for months. I'm still the Duke you know. I'm still strong. Let me show you... Let me…" He slid his hands down to her buttocks and caressed them.

She leaned down and nuzzled his neck and kissed a path up to his mouth. Her hands trailed down his stomach and then set to work unbuttoning his fly. Duke rolled so that she was beneath him and braced himself over her. His tags dangled above her, lightly brushing her chest. She finished with his fly and they both worked to shove his jeans and boxers down and off. She smiled lustily at what she had revealed, then looked at his boxers and laughed yet again.

"Really, Duke? Little boxer dogs?"

"They were a Christmas present." He smiled down at her.

"Who's buying you underwear, Duke? I didn't get those…"

"Mamma. A mother can buy her son drawers, right? She thought it was a funny play on words. Boxers on my boxers. Look, they're wearing bow ties. It's festive."

She held up the boxers and giggled. "Sometimes you can be one Hell of a goofball."

Duke snatched his drawers from her and tossed them over her shoulder. "Only for you, Shatzie." He let himself fall on her, biting her neck and growling as he kissed and nipped his way lower, making a path to her breasts, where he lingered. She gasped and arched her back, her hands resting on his head, fingers twined in his hair. He looked up at her. Her eyes were closed, her lips partly open. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, and she was there, right now, in his bed.

Duke moved back over her and kissed her passionately. She met passion with passion, lust with lust, holding him to her. Making room for him to nestle between her thighs.

"Red, you, ummm, you still taking those things?" He nuzzled her ear.

"Yes, I am." She nuzzled him back and nibbled on his earlobe. His stomach flipped.

"So, I won't need to use…"

"No, Duke, you won't"

He grinned to himself as he gently caressed her hips and guided her to him. "Fantastic."

"Conrad, love, it's been forever…I need you."

_Yep, that'll do it._

He took her then, and they made love through the night, resting when they reached exhaustion and waking to pleasure each other again.


	4. Chapter 4

Duke slowly came awake with Scarlett in his arms. He lingered in the pleasant drowse that comes between sleep and consciousness, savoring the feeling of her warm body snuggled up against him. It had been months since he'd felt her warmth in the morning. The sun streamed down through the small windows that were all Duke's basement room would allow. He heard water running, and figured most of the others were up, if not everyone. There would be coffee by now. Pretty soon, breakfast, too. Duke glanced down at her slumbering against his chest and smiled to himself, remembering the things they'd done to each other over the past few hours.

_Breakfast can wait. Why would I leave a bed full of beautiful woman?_

He felt himself grow excited again and was caught between waking her for more lovemaking and leaving her so that he could watch her sleep. He caressed her shoulder.

"Mmmmmmmmmmm." She smiled and cuddled closer. Her breathing settled back into the slow steady pace of slumber.

In idea came to Duke, and he carefully lifted her arm and very slowly slid away and out of bed, tiptoeing to the bathroom. He didn't want to leave her, but it would only take a few minutes. He finished up and left the bathroom to see her half-consciously roll over away from him, hand sliding over the sheets in search of his body. He climbed onto the bed behind her and pulled her back to him. Ducking his head, he nuzzled her ear and then rubbed his chin against her cheek.

Her hand flew back, and her fingertips explored his chin and upper lip. "You shaved it! You actually did it!" She turned in his arms to smile at him as she stroked his cheeks. "Who's this handsome clean-shaven man? You're not the guy I went to bed with."

"Well, hey there, gorgeous. I done scared him off so's I can have you all to myself." Duke crawled forward, and she smiled and ran her fingers through his hair as he braced himself over her.

"Oh really? Did he put up a fight?" She pulled his head down so they were nose to nose.

"Oh yeah, tooth and nail, but I won out in the end." He nuzzled back to her ear, making her sigh.

"Mmmmmm. What was your edge?" She gasped as he nipped her throat.

"I'm hornier."

She laughed and reached down. "I can see that."

"Duke! Scarlett! Get up already! Breakfast's cold!"

Duke sighed.

_Seriously?_

"Rabbit, scram."

"Mamma said she's giving your bacon to the hungry kids in Africa." Drew rattled the doorknob for effect.

"Don't come in here!" Duke's nerves got the better of him. He calmed a little when he realized she was staying outside. "Did she send you down here?"

"No. She just made a joke about 'it must be good, he's missing breakfast'. Then Pop said something about your big appetite that I didn't really understand. But it's not like we all don't know what you're doing."

Scarlett laughed aloud. Duke fell back on the bed and let his arm rest over his eyes, groaning to himself.

"So…you getting up?"

Duke sat up on his elbows and looked down at himself. "Definitely." Scarlett crawled over him and began to kiss his chest. "Maybe. Gimme, um…" She kissed to his dog tags and then followed the ball chain up to his neck. "…thirty minutes?" his voice cracked as he felt her hands start to glide down his stomach. "Make it an hour." He grabbed Scarlett and rolled her under him for counterattack.

"Scarlett?"

"Oh, an hour for me too, maybe more." Scarlett called through the door. "Hey, ouch. No, I didn't say _stop." _

"Gross, you guys. Honestly." Drew retreated back upstairs, the slamming of the basement door announcing her final departure.

"Ahh, full retreat. Victory! Very good." Duke smiled down at Scarlett's twinkling eyes. "I claim the spoils of war!"

"You can be such a goofball. Bring back the guy with the goatee."

"I thought you said it tickled." He slid his hands down over her belly and around to her buttocks.

"Well, maybe I'd grown to like the tickle." Scarlett gasped as he nipped along her collarbone.

"Mmmmm, I'll just have to tickle you with something else."

* * *

Duke followed Scarlett out into the kitchen a little over an hour later, hoping more than a little that most everyone had eaten and moved on. As luck would have it, only three people lingered at the breakfast table. Duke was surprised to see Jennifer's longtime friend, Laura What's her Name, had joined Jenn and Mamma. All three grinned knowingly at him.

_Well, I've stared down worse. Right? I mean, __**obviously, **__I'm a grown man. Mamma's gotta know I have sex. They all do. Right? They all know…Crap._

His eyes wandered over everyone at the table as he wandered over and poured coffee for both himself and Scarlett. Mamma smiled.

"So you're both finally up! Good, I was beginning to wonder. I kept the food warm in the oven." She stood to retrieve what was left of breakfast, but Duke stopped her.

"Relax, Mamma, I got it." He grabbed two plates from the cabinet and opened the oven, seeing a platter of eggs and bacon inside, as well as a woven basket covered with a cloth that he knew held his mother's biscuits. Scarlett came to help, but he smiled and waved her at a chair, handing her a mug of coffee. "Have a seat, Shatzi, I'll dish you up something."

Mamma started and then smiled at the term of endearment. Scarlett sank down at the kitchen table and nodded at Jennifer, who smiled back. "Morning, Scarlett."

"Hey, Jennifer."

They had gotten to know each other in the hospital. Not the best place to get acquainted. The family had stayed for a while, getting Drew's teachers to fax over schoolwork. Determined not to fall behind in her freshman year, Jennifer had called her professors at USC and managed to get reading assignments. She'd found used copies of her textbooks at the university nearby-the same one where Quick Kick had met Amber. Both managed to keep up. Many an afternoon, the girls had sat in his room with their work, keeping Duke company while he lay drugged out of his wits. Scarlett visited several times a day, and had slowly gotten to know his sisters. Sometimes, they left her alone with him. Sometimes, they stayed. He could only remember snatches of their earlier conversations. As the pain became more bearable and Doc lightened the dose, he was able to follow. Duke sometimes pretended to be asleep just to listen. It was interesting to watch the two halves of his life come together.

Then his family left for home, and he went with them. Leaving his brother, his base and his soldiers behind had been hard. Leaving Scarlett had been excruciating.

* * *

_He stood in the terminal, looking down at the polished toes of his shoes. Duke knew he had lost some muscle; his class A hung looser than he'd have preferred. He'd tried to do a few squats and push-ups, some bodyweight exercises, when he was alone in his room. Doc, Nurse Matthews and even Lifeline had conspired to keep an eagle eye on him. When he was successful in sneaking in some exercise, he tired quickly. _

_Duke turned his head and watched Vincent and the girls as they looked out at the planes flying in and out, imagining aloud were each had come from or where they were going._

_They'd insisted on a wheelchair to the door of the hospital. Duke refused to be wheeled past his men. He'd yanked the brake, pushed himself up and walked across the concrete with his own two feet to the van waiting to drive them to the airport. Vincent had quickly come to one side, Scarlett the other, Jack right behind him; not offering any visible arm for support, but supporting all the same. Nurse Matthews offered to load the wheelchair so Duke could be wheeled through the terminal. His responding glare was the first thing ever to make the woman shrink. Drew laughed. Mamma had apologized. As she sat next to him, Scarlett gave him an understanding look and slid her hand in his._

_So he walked through the airport with his family, his woman holding his hand. Stopping now and again ostensibly for a drink at a water fountain, a magazine from the terminal shop and a snack from the airport café for himself and the girls. Really, he was resting. He was thankful he'd loaded his duffle onto the luggage cart with everyone else's carry-ons. It shocked him just how far from recovery he really was._

_After security, Drew had grabbed his other hand. When they got to the terminal, Mamma and the girls sat while Jack checked the five of them in._

_So now he stood in the terminal, waiting for the arrival of the plane that would fly him back home; away from his base, away from his Joes, away from his brother and away from his love. Ahead of him lay a long recovery, and Duke wasn't sure if he didn't prefer going through it on base. Hawk and Doc had given him no choice: Go home. Rest, recover. Come back and be cleared and ready to pass the physical in eight months._

_Eight months? Eight months of no musters, no missions, no reports, meetings or paperwork. Eight months away from the Comm room, the motor pool, the gym, his quarters, Beach Head's crazy obstacle courses. Eight months away from her and everything she did for him. Eight months with no stolen kisses. Eight months without private moments. Eight months without passionate nights. Eight months without pillow talk into the early morning hours. Eight months away from the bright smiles and laughter that he lived for, the smiles that lit up his day._

"_Eight months…Shit."_

"_I can visit, Duke."_

_He knew the pre scheduled leaves; he was in charge of scheduling them. Scarlett had just taken a long leave to visit distant family in Ireland before they were saddled with the BET. She wouldn't have any for a while._

_He looked over at his mother and stepfather, now sitting in the terminal waiting area. His mother quickly looked away. She had been watching them._

_Duke rubbed the back of his neck. "Red…I can't go. I'll get back on the van and we'll go back to base. I have too many responsibilities. Get me back to my base where I belong."_

"_Don't be silly Duke. Hawk and Doc won't let you set foot on base 'till you're fit to be there." Scarlett stepped closer and reached for his cheek._

"_I'm fit, Scarlett. I can shuffle paperwork while I get back on top of things. It won't take long. I just need to put back on a little muscle, that's all." Duke mumbled the last sentence as he once again stared at his shoes._

_Her hand slid to his shoulder, then down across his 'fruit salad'. Duke Hauser had one of the largest collections of medals and service ribbons of any NCO in the armed forces. In fact, it put several officers to shame. And he let none of it go to his head. She fingered his medal of honor and the new Purple Heart and Silver Star. Her hand slid across his chest to rest over where a light bandage still covered his wound, protecting the stitches from catching against his clothing. "Duke, please be realistic. This is serious. You need to take time and recover properly." _

"_Scarlett, my base needs me. My brother, the Joes…"_

"_Your base will have to do without you for a while. It'll survive. The Joes will hang on. They'll miss you. They'll be thinking of you all the time. The Joes…__**this **__Joe…Well, __**I**__…" she faltered into silence._

_He looked up into her eyes. "Scarlett…" his voice was a whisper. "I need you."_

_Tears escaped her brimming blue eyes and ran down her cheeks. "I need you, too."_

_Duke pulled her to him and held her tight, no longer caring if his mother or sisters or anyone was watching. Passengers flooded through the gate doorway and past them. The plane had arrived._

"_Ladies and gentlemen, we are pleased to announce the arrival of flight one-fifty-two from Los Angeles. After a short time to clean the cabin, we will be continuing on to Lambert-St. Louis airport on time."_

_Vincent hugged Drew, Jenn, and Mamma and wandered over and put a hand on Duke's back. "You're going to have to get ready to go, Duke." Everyone else began gathering bags together._

_Duke twined his fingers in Scarlett's hair. It was too soon. Much too soon. "Shatzi…" He whispered in her ear. "I love you, my Shana." He brought his lips to hers._

"_Ladies and Gentlemen, we're going to start boarding here, please make sure you have your boarding passes out as we call row numbers, starting with rows twenty six through thirty."_

"_Conrad, I know it's hard." Mamma called softly. "Vincent?"_

"_Con…I hate to do this, Bro." Falcon patted Duke's back a few times._

_They ended the kiss. Scarlett leaned forward to his ear. "I love you, my love. My Conrad. My Duke." She wiped her eyes with one hand and caressed his cheek with the other._

"_I'll call you. Every night, I'll call. I'll write. I'll do whatever I can." He couldn't bring himself to let go of her hand. He pulled it to his lips and kissed it._

"_Rows twenty through twenty five."_

"_Champ, we have to go." Jack walked over. "Scarlett, it was good to meet you." Duke had to let her hand go so she could shake his stepfather's. "Come anytime you can make it. Sport," he turned to Vincent, "You've done good, son. I'm proud. Keep it up. Come home when you can." Jack and Vincent embraced and slapped each other._

"_Pop! Duke! Hurry!" Drew was bouncing by the gate. _

_Jennifer hefted her carry on and waved. "Bye Vince! Write me! Bye Scarlett! I'll make videos and take pictures and send it all!"_

_Vincent pulled Duke in and hugged him tightly. Duke stood lamely, then gave his little brother a bear hug. "Take care of my base, kid. Send me pictures of whatever you can." He looked over at Scarlett, then leaned closer to Vincent. "Vince… Falcon, keep an eye on her for me. Don't let her get too down."_

"_Will do, Duke. Have a good trip. Enjoy the Hell out of the time off."_

_Jack grabbed his sleeve and pulled toward the gate. Duke walked a few steps, and, at the gate, turned back to Scarlett, half-heartedly lifting a hand. Suddenly, she ran over and back into his arms. They kissed deeply, quickly and parted. "Red, I'll miss you God, I'll miss you." He just couldn't say goodbye._

"_I'll see you soon. You'll see. It'll seem like nothing."_

_Duke turned abruptly and walked through the gate and down the walkway to the plane, hurting too much to look back. _

_She had lied. The months without her had felt like forever._

* * *

Duke finished dishing out onto plates and went to the table, setting Scarlett's breakfast in front of her as he sat on her left. As she reached for her fork he dropped his hand over hers, and gave it a little loving rub. She smiled up into his eyes, turning her hand over and lacing her fingers through his.

Mamma smiled. "Did you sleep well, Scarlett?"

"I did, thanks."

"He let you sleep?" Jennifer snorted.

Duke saw the color rise to Scarlett's cheeks. He caught Jennifer's eye and frowned. "Jenn, when did you become crude?"

"Sorry, sorry. Those walls aren't as thick as you think, though, Con. You might want to pad your headboard. But it isn't anything I don't hear in the dorms regularly."

Duke felt his ears grow hot. Then the disquieting thought scampered through his head that his little sister might not keep herself on the hearing end of things. She was on her own, in college, surrounded by hormone-crazed boys.

"Hearing better be just about it, Jenn. The convent still has openings."

"Oh, God, Con, so you're the only one who gets to have fun?"

_I'll kill them. I'll find them and I'll kill them, each and every one who lays a hand on her._

Momentarily distracted from his own embarrassment, Duke imagined kicking down the door to Jennifer's dorm room and hauling some frat boy off of her and tossing him into the hallway. Maybe bouncing the bastard off the wall opposite the door.

"Breakfast conversations were never like this in my house." Scarlett laughed.

Mamma rolled her eyes. "This is what happens when children grow up in the country, surrounded by horses, chickens and everything else. Not exactly perfect for the breakfast table, though. But I do hope you got some sleep. Although, if he's anything like his father-"

"Mamma…"

"Sebastian was _tireless_. The man was constantly worried about making sure I was _satisfied_. Conrad always seemed to have good physical stamina." Mamma shook her head. Jennifer and Laura snickered.

"Mamma!"

Scarlett smiled. "It must be genetic."

"Red!" Duke felt her rest her hand on his leg under the table and caress it comfortingly.

"Conrad Hauser, you _are_ a stud." Laura slapped Duke on the back. She and Jenn gathered their things.

"Laura and I are going to meet up with some of the girls in town. I'd like to hang out a bit more before break is over." She leaned over and kissed Duke's cheek. "My big brother the stud. See you later."

He put his chin is his hand and grunted at her.

"Bye Mamma, bye Scarlett!" She waved as they pushed out the kitchen door. "I'll be home for dinner, probably. I'll call if not."

"Have a good time, dear." Mamma waved back. Once they were gone, she turned back to Duke and Scarlett. "So, what do you have planned for today?"

"Nothing, really." Duke took a final bite of eggs. "But I was wondering if you'd like to go on a run with me, Red, once breakfast settles." It had been a while since they had run together. He missed it. Running alone got the job done, but it was always better with her along. "After that, maybe we could wander into town for a look around. Not that that'll take long. It's a small town."

"A run would be great. I need to stretch my legs." Scarlett pushed her plate away and took up her mug in both hands. "I haven't seen downtown Musicks Ferry."

"There isn't really an uptown." Duke shrugged. "But there's a few good places for lunch and whatnot. You can see where I went to school and all the places I got into trouble."

"All the better. I'd like to see it."

"Good deal." He gathered their plates and took them to the sink. "Mamma? Can I help you wash up?"

Mamma beamed. "Certainly!"

Scarlett came next to Duke and grabbed the dishtowel. "I'll dry."

For a while, the only sounds in the kitchen were the clanks of the plates and cutlery and the swish of the sink. Duke washed, Scarlett dried, and Mamma put everything back in the proper place. Duke stared out the window as he scrubbed, watching Drew turning cartwheels and flip-flops over the lawn. She'd shot up since she hit double digits. Now the cute, eccentric, little girl had become a skinny, lithe pre-teen. She was almost up to his chest. Her odd sense of humor had persevered, but was tempered by adolescent surliness just popping through. Since he had been home, she hadn't clung to his side the same way he'd remembered. She didn't need his help for as many things as she used to. She didn't jump into his arms for a snuggle nearly as much. Puberty was cutting Duke's little shadow away from him.

_You knew it wouldn't last forever. She has to grow up. She doesn't need you as much anymore._

Duke watched as she executed a perfect backflip off an Adirondack chair. He rapped on the window, and she turned to see his thumbs up. She bowed and waved.

"What's going on?" Scarlett nudged his arm.

"Rabbit's getting really good at her gymnastics. That was a really nice flip! Take a look." He pointed as Scarlett leaned to look out the window just in time to see Drew roll into handspring.

"Nice. Maybe I can teach her a few more katas while I'm here. She learned the ones I taught her on base pretty quick."

"That really inspired her." Mamma closed the last cabinet and wiped down the counter. "She came home determined to work hard. While Conrad was getting back in shape here and at the physical therapy center or the gym, she was running with him, or learning from him _and_ going to practice with her coach every day. If she wasn't training with her brother, she was training with Kyle. Once or twice she did both in the same day. She's a hard worker. "

"She's like her brother." Scarlett rested a hand on Duke's arm. He felt his neck grow warm.

"She is, indeed." Mamma smiled. "Although, Scarlett, I think she's a little jealous."

"Really?"

"Just a bit. I think. She's his Rabbit. Has been since the day she was born."

Duke sighed. He had sensed a little bit of the green-eyed monster since Scarlett had arrived. "She's growing up, though. Lately, it seems she doesn't climb all over me as much, anyway. I didn't think Scarlett would bother her." He sighed again and gazed out the window to catch Drew back flipping off the steps. "She's still my Rabbit, but-"

_She's not going to need me forever. When it gets to the point where Rabbit doesn't need me, what do I do?_

"Of course she is, Kleiner, but she's not been your shadow as much this leave. Don't feel bad, she's growing up, but she still adores you. She sees your attention is divided, and that upsets her a little."

"Maybe we could take her with us when we go into town?" Scarlett came up next to Duke and ran a hand down his back. "She wouldn't feel so left out with me here."

"Are you sure, Red?" He turned to her and brushed a few loose locks behind her ear.

"Have I ever said anything I don't mean? It's fine. She's a good kid. You know how I value family."

"Shatzi, thanks." He pulled her close and kissed her then wrapped her in his arms and held her close. Mamma poured herself a final cup of coffee, smiling broadly.

"How about we go on that run, now? I think breakfast's settled enough. Think you're ready to keep up with me?"

Duke grinned down at her. "Keep up? You'll be stumbling in my dust."

She laughed. "_That_ would be a first."

They changed quickly and hit the dirt track that lead from the house, between the pastures, and up to meet the T that would either take them to the river or down to Willy's place. Drew waved them off her face blank. Duke noticed she didn't bother to even ask if she could come along. He'd done more than a few short light jogs with her, in recent months, but there was no way she could go as fast or as far as he could run with Scarlett.

_Still, I would think she would at least try._

Scarlett kept a fast pace, she always had. She moved like a cheetah. Lithe, graceful and fast-for a certain distance. Duke pushed himself a little, knowing in the end his endurance and stamina would win out. If she was a cheetah, Duke was a tiger-he could trot at a steady pace all day long. She would tire, eventually, and might even fall behind if he kept going. Keeping going was something Duke knew he was good at. As Sandy had said, he would go right until he dropped, if the situation called for it.

She had already modified her pace by the time they reached the T intersection, and he turned to the left and took her towards Willy's. Duke didn't want to have to pass by the trail to the quarry and give Scarlett the opportunity to ask him about it. He had caught her looking at Papa's portrait where it hung next to the fireplace last evening before dinner.

Duke wanted to tell her about his Papa. He wanted to tell her all he could remember about how his father used to swing him high into the air, over and over, making him laugh. He wanted to share how big and strong Papa was. He wanted her to know how Papa would hold him in front on his saddle. She should hear about how Papa would hum gruffly when he was pitching hay, or fixing a fence. Some old German tune from his own childhood, over and over. He yearned to share what is was like to sit on Papa's shoulders to get a perfect view over everyone of the town parade on the Fourth of July. Or to sit on his lap on a winter evening in front of the fire, listening to one of many fairy tales. Or to listen to his deep laugh. The way Papa was friendly to _everyone_, in a time when friendship was dictated by ridiculous prejudices. But he couldn't bear the idea of having get too close to that bright summer day in the quarry. The bright, sunny day that haunted him and woke him up almost every night.

_The birds…they were singing._

"What's on your mind, Duke?"

He started and saw her looking over at him.

"Oh, just thinking. You know how it is when you run, and your mind sort of wanders."

"Oh. Sure." She let it drop. "So, what's out this direction?" She panted.

"This eventually takes us out to my cousin Willy's spread. Willy runs the finances of pretty much the whole operation." Duke stopped and tagged the fencepost. He walked around for a bit to cool off, and pointed in the direction of Willy's home. "Over there. Manages a lot of the breeding, too. I would, but my attendance in these things has been spotty, at best." He winked at her. "Willy's also been looking after my money for years. Pretty good investor, to tell the truth. Willy always had a head for numbers and a feel for money. When I retire, I'll be pretty comfy. It's all planned out." It hit Duke suddenly that he could very easily see her as part of that plan. His stomach jumped.

"Nice. We going to drop in on Willy?"

"Later, when we have a little more time. Lena-that's his wife- Lena tends to sit visitors down and feed them for a few hours. Love the woman, but we already have plans for today. On top of that, the kids like to climb all over me. You'll have to peel them off me to get me away."

"Kids climb all over you wherever you go, Duke." She laughed as she walked around the fencepost and back to him. "It must have something to do with your height."

"Right. I'm a big jungle gym. Let's head back." They both jogged back along the track towards home.

"You like kids a lot, don't you?"

"I won't disagree with that. They're fun."

"You already know how to handle a baby."

"Thanks to Rabbit, yeah. Bottles, bed time, bath time, naps, colic, burping. Diapers." He stopped suddenly. She pulled up and came back to him. "Um, Red…is there anything I need to know?" _I can't see how it'd be possible. Last night was the first time in months. The last time was right before I left base._

She looked him in the eye and smiled. "Relax. We're fine. I was just, well, I was just wondering, that's all."

"Ah." _Wondering about what? _Duke realized that maybe Scarlett was considering future plans of her own. It wasn't something they had talked about. Thinking about a far future is impossible when you accept the fact you might not have one-choices are limited. His injury in the battle for the B.E.T. made everything more realistic. Yet…yet giving up all hope of a life together was saying you were giving up on the future completely. Better to hope for the best than to entrench yourself in the worst.

Duke took hold of he arms, pulled her close, and tipped her face up to look into her eyes. He gazed at her a few moments, raising his eyebrow and cocking his head to one side. She grinned. "Aw, Red…" Duke pulled her close to kiss her lightly. "Let's get back. We need a shower before we can go into town, anyhow."

"You in a rush?"

"Well, no. But I figured we'd get lunch there, and I want to show you a thing or two first."

"We could save time if we both took the same shower."

Duke laughed. "Maybe. Maybe not."

She laughed with him. They ran back home in good spirits. The shower took much longer than usual.

* * *

Drew sat in the back, staring out the car window as they drove down Douglas road. "We going by the high school first?"

"Just for a bit." Duke slowed for the turn onto Old Jamestown. "Not really much to see, Red. You've seen one high school, you've seen them all."

"Show me the field on which you ran to glory." She rubbed his leg.

He laughed. "That was forever ago, Red. The state championship was in Kansas City, anyhow."

"You played more than a few games on the home field."

"Oh, sure, when I was a young colt. Now I'm just an old warhorse."

"There's plenty of stallion in you yet, love."

"Oh God, shut up please." Drew mumbled. Looking in the rearview mirror, Duke saw her roll her eyes.

_What's gotten __**into**__ her?_

"Well, anyhow, here we are." Duke pulled up in the parking lot and parked. "Course we can't go inside, it's all locked up tight." They walked around the side, past a few of the buildings. Duke pointed at a window. "That's Mamma's classroom."

"So there it is. How long has she been teaching, Duke?"

He scratched his head, "Well, I remember her taking correspondence classes and night classes when we were bouncing around bases. She started teaching History when we settled back at home, after Jack found a permanent post at Leonard Wood. Now she's teaching History, debate and she helps out with the drama and gymnastics. Volleyball now and again." He pointed to a window in a different building. "Jeff's music room is there. Orchestra, marching band, choir. I'm pretty sure he does Jazz some part of the year."

"She says she's going to retire after I graduate." Drew yanked up a long piece of grass and stripped the leaves.

Scarlett looked sidelong at her. "When's that?"

"Not for a while. I have to get out of Junior High first. A few more years for that. It's taking _forever." _She tossed the grass over her shoulder and sighed.

"You kidding me, Rabbit? Just last week I was holding your hands to help you walk. Yesterday, I took the training wheels off you bike. Seems like it, anyhow." They passed the gym and reached the game fields. Duke walked them to the football field.

"Vincent's out. Jennifer's going back to USC next week. When you go back, I'll be all alone." Drew sat down on the steps to the bleachers. She glared down at her shoes.

_Is that what this is about?_

Duke sat down next to her. She scooted from him and looked away. He looked at her back for a minute, then put a hand on her shoulder.

"Rabbit…"

She took off her glasses and polished them, still looking away. "Why'd you have to go _back, _anyhow?" Her voice broke, and she sobbed. "You don't have to go back. Wasn't nearly dying enough for you? Why'd you all have to go and leave me _alone?"_

Duke pulled her to him. She fought, at first, but he gently held her and she relaxed and melted into his chest. Scarlett came close and touched Duke's back. Then she sank down next to him.

"Vince gets to be with you. He gets to be there. Jennifer's having fun learning about movies. I'm stuck _here."_

"You have tons of friends, Rabbit, you're not alone." Duke stroked her hair.

"It's not the _same_. None of them are _Jenn_, or _Vince, _none of them are _you._" She made a small fist and hit him a few times. "I want you _here _with _me._"

"Rabbit, you know I have to go back. I always have to go back. I always _have_ gone back. I was stationed on one base or another since before you were _born_. This isn't new. This is what I _do_, Rabbit." He held her back from him and ducked his head to look into her tear-streaked face. "I was all alone, in the beginning, Rabbit."

"No you weren't."

"I was. I was _all_ alone. All I had was Mamma. Papa was dead and Mamma was all I had."

"You had your cousins Willy and Rolfe and Wolfe, and Jimmy and Jeff, too. Grammy and Grampy." She hiccupped a few times.

"Sort of. It still wasn't the same, you're right. There was a lot of time none of them were around. You know, the year they started the annual Father-Son picnic in town was the same year Papa died." _That had been hard. _Duke remembered hiding out in the barn all day. Uncle Wilhelm asked if he wanted to go with them. So had Jeff's father. Duke hadn't been able to even bear the thought of it. "It was a slap in the face."

"That's terrible!" Scarlett looked shocked.

"Oh, no one meant anything by it. People had been planning it for months. Just something to kick off the summer, Red."

"Still, in a small town…"

"It's all the past. Rabbit, it was worse when Jack took us to base after base. I didn't know _anyone_. Just Mamma. And Jack, but he was still new. Every time I got to know people, we moved somewhere else." It had almost been a relief when Vincent was born. Jennifer made it better, even if they were both a lot younger. _More familiar faces from year to year._ "By the time we finally settled back home, I had a big family, and that was nice, Rabbit. That was real nice. Then, a bit later, you came along, and that was even_ better. _I know what it's like to be all alone, away from family."

"Yeah, well, _they're_ your family now. You don't care about _me._"

"That's not all true, Rabbit. They are like my family. But they're not you all. _None _of them are_ you_. _No one _there is like my Rabbit. It kills me to leave you. Every time."

"Drew, Duke's always quiet when he comes back from a trip home. You have to know, he mopes around for about a week. Maybe more. People suffer."

Drew looked at her. "Seriously?"

"Oh yeah, woe be to the Joe who gets in the way when Duke comes back from going home. Just ask Leatherneck. Or Beach Head. Or Footloose. Or Flint. Or-" Scarlett held up her hand and began counting off Joes on her fingers.

"She gets the idea, Red."

"Or Quick Kick. Or Lady Jaye. Or Wet Suit. Or Ace. Or Rip Cord."

"Scarlett…"

"Or Alpine. Or Clutch. Or Blowtorch."

"O'Hara!"

"What, Top?"

"Secure it!" Duke frowned.

Scarlett winked at Drew. "See? He's a grumpy bear. Sort of like that."

Drew laughed and rubbed her nose. "Does he still have the mug I gave him?"

Duke grinned, "Oh, you bet. Drink out of it every morning, and every afternoon."

"So _you_ gave him that mug! Duke's had that thing from the beginning. It's legendary, now."

"Really?"

"Oh yeah, Rabbit. I remember the first morning I pulled it on 'em." Duke rubbed his chin.

* * *

"_You all have gotten used to being __**special**__. You__** specialize**__ and expect everyone to kiss your asses and give you cushy pansy-ass worship and wet their pants when you pirouette into view and smile at them." Duke walked down the early morning muster, tea mug in hand, drilling into each Joe with ice blue eyes, "that's all done. Forget being special. Everyone here is elite, in your own thick little heads. That's nothing. You're all the same, so none of you are special in this unit," he stopped at Breaker right as the man popped a bubble, "what in the fucking Hell are you doing chewing __**gum**__ in my muster?! Get rid of it before I reach down your throat and rip it out myself!"_

"_Sorry, Top," Breaker reached up to retrieve his gum._

"_Don't you __**dare**__ take that out and keep it for later. There is no later for that gum!"_

"_Sorry, Top," Breaker turned his head to the side and leaned-_

"_You spit it out onto my blacktop, you'll be licking it clean!"_

"_Sorry," Breaker swallowed, "Top."_

_Duke glared at the man and then continued down the line. The Joes were, for the first time, appearing in their new BDUs. Hawk had decreed a somewhat loose dress code, assuming every soldier knew what he or she could perform best in. Most had chosen some version of basic fatigues, of which Duke approved mightily. _

_Duke himself had gone pretty simple, but had couldn't help adding Poppy's bandolier. Poppy had been a good soldier, in his day. As an Alamo Scout, he'd gone behind enemy lines repeatedly for his country. The work his unit had done in the Southwest Pacific Theater in World War II was some of the finest in the military, ever, and they'd never gotten much recognition. Duke himself was part of a group pushing for the surviving members to be granted the Special Forces tab. When Poppy handed his step grandson the bandolier he wore through the war, he'd probably never guessed it'd see battle again._

_Duke figured the thing had seen one man safely through some scary shit, it might as just help another. The bandolier had ridden his shoulder through all his tours in Southeast Asia, and now it would ride with him against Cobra. It was the least he could do for his Poppy. _

_Duke stopped and sipped his tea, and heard a few chuckles. He spun around on Clutch and Steeler, who struggled to stifle grins, "What?!"_

"_Nothing, Top."_

_Duke sipped slowly. He could see Clutch was desperate to chortle. Duke moved right into his face, "is there something __**funny**__, Clutch?"_

"_N, no, Top."_

_Duke sipped his tea again, Steeler and Short Fuze snorted. Duke stepped back and glared at all three of them, taking a fourth sip, "it's my mug, isn't it?"_

"_Not at all, Top." Steeler was turning red._

_Duke took a long, slow, deliberate sip, "it's the kittens, isn't it? You think my __**kittens**__ on my favorite mug are fucking __**funny**__?"_

_Down the line, Trip Wire gasped for air._

"_Let me tell you, my __**baby sister**__ sent me this mug. She put cookies in it. Goddamn Snickerdoodle cookies, 'cause I love me some snickerdoodles. In this here kitten mug. The kittens are fucking __**playful**__. I love this motherfucking mug. No one laughs at __**my goddamn kitten tea mug**__."_

_Clutch looked ready to explode. Duke focused an icy glare his direction._

"_You think these kittens are fucking __**funny**__, soldier?"_

"_No, not at all, Top."_

"_Damn straight. These are goddamn motherfucking __**badass**__ kittens."_

"_Hoo-ah, Top."_

"_Plus, it holds a __**HELL**__ of a lot of goddamn tea."_

"_That's a bonus, Top."_

"_I love drinking a __**HELL**__ of a lot of __**GODDAMN**__ tea out of my __**BADASS**__ kitten mug. You'd better get used to it." Duke heard Torpedo break down behind him._

_Duke got right up in Steeler's face and took another sip. He growled quietly at the soldier, "I'm drinking motherfucking Tension Tamer tea out of this here badass kitten mug. Do I seem __**tame**__?"_

_Steeler, afraid to open his mouth and lose what composure he could cling to, nodded fervently._

"_This is about as __**tame**__ as I get, soldier. Remember that." Duke moved on._

_He saw that a few soldiers had gone to extremes with uniform. He stopped at Snake Eyes. "You've __**got**__ to be __**fucking**__ kidding me."_

_Snake Eyes adjusted a few belts. Their pay grade may have been the same same, but Hawk had made Duke field commander and First Sergeant, while Snake was a Master Sergeant. This gave Duke the diamond under his stripes and seniority. Still, they both knew the truth. Snake would do what he needed when he needed to and what was required when Duke required it. Duke leaned in to whisper. "Black? Black? Black and silver? You'd better be sure you're Sergeant Kick Ass every step of the way."_

_*Black is minimizing, Duke.* Snake Eyes signed._

"_Cute. I bet the chicks dig it, too," Duke rolled his eyes and moved on. Honestly, black commando costumes, this was getting silly. Cover Girl was a fucking model and she had dressed out in something more motor pool than catwalk. Duke nodded in approval at her and strode on, "You all are going to have to give up being little __**princesses**__ and work as a team, and that means doing whatever I damn well __**tell**__ you," Bill's hat was over the top, but overall the Air Cav look was more reassuring than laughable, "__**when**__ I tell you," Gung Ho looked Semper Fi all the way, "__**how**__ I tell you to do…"-wait…_

"_Gung Ho..."_

"_Top?"_

"_You have an allergy to shirts?"_

"_No, Top."_

"_I can't help but notice you seem to be missing one."_

"_They cover my ink, Top."_

"_I would think that's the overall point."_

"_Can't cover the ink, Top. Wouldn't be right."_

"_You love your jarhead insignia that much?"_

"_God, Country, Corps, Duke. Wear it and bear it."_

"_They do make t shirts with logos on them, these days. I have one that says 'army' on it, myself. My little brother has one with a smiley face-"_

"_God, Country, Corps."_

"_You better hope we stay out of the snow, gyrene. Snow Job is ready for it, but you'll freeze your balls off."__ Then again, we go to the desert, and Snow Job's left waxing his skis._

_Duke continued along. Stalker, awesome, cammo, sporting the beret. Duke had given his cover up. He hated hats. He hated sweating under hats. He hated always tying to keep __**track**__ of a hat. _

"_I'm telling you right now that you will be involved in shit way crazier than you could ever imagine. So you'd __**better**__ be prepared to toe the line. Men as well as women. I will not stand for any screwing around on my base. To me, right now, you are all Joes. ALL of you."_

_Duke stopped and turned back. "Just because we've been allowed to play dress-up doesn't mean we're not serious," he spun around to finish his walk down the line, and came face to face with Scarlett. _

_Oh. My. God._

_Duke found himself staring at one of the most form-fitting uniforms he'd had the pleasure to see. His felt his own eyebrows shoot up as he slowly scanned down her body and took it all in. He looked back up to meet her eyes, and she smiled happily at him._

"_This is so much more comfortable! I can really move around. Fatigues can be so__** restricting**__."_

_Oh, Hell. This was going to be tough._

"_Nice mug, Duke."_

_Torture. Sheer torture. Every damn inch. Duke finished his tea, regarding her over the rim of his mug. How in God's name was he going to handle it? He thought sharing the hotel room near Benning was hard. Speaking of hard…_

"_Ummm, nice gloves? It all matches, doesn't it?" Duke felt himself starting to sweat under his shirt._

"_Sure, might as well get it right the first time," she smiled, "it's amazing what they can come up with if you ask nicely."_

"_Are those throwing stars on the backs?" Duke could imagine the boys at the PX rushing to fill THAT order._

"_Shuriken, Duke. I'm going to run out of bolts eventually."_

"_I suppose your bolt thingy can only hold so many. What's the red padding on your shoulder for?"_

"_I rest the butt of my crossbow there."_

_Duke resisted the urge to look at her rear end. It was a mighty tough battle, but he won out in the end. Time to escape._

"_Well, very good. Carry on," Duke walked past Doc to the end of the formation and turned to look back over his new unit, "Fall out, and finish getting settled in. Check the duty roster and get to work. I want everything in tip top shape for inspection."_

_The Joes scattered, except for Doc, who put a hand on Duke's shoulder, "need to talk, Duke?"_

_Duke looked forlornly at the teabag in his now empty mug and sighed, "not much I can say, Doc."_

_Doc smiled, "you aren't an ordinary man, Duke-but you aren't superhuman, either."_

"_Help." Duke's gaze turned to watch Scarlett walk across the blacktop._

"_Nice trick with the kitten mug. Throws them off every time."_

"_Lordy, it's __**better**__ when she walks away."_

"_You'll figure it out. My door is always open."_

* * *

Drew laughed and fell back against the bleacher behind her.

"I didn't know you felt all that." Scarlett's eyes twinkled.

"Good Lord, woman. You were driving me out of my mind. It took me a month to figure out how to spar with you without needing a cold shower." Duke scratched the back of his neck. "It was Hell."

"It was mutual." She reached over and stroked his face.

"Really?"

"Oh yeah."

Drew shook her head. "Still, if you go back…if you go back, how can I keep you alive?"

"Rabbit? That's not your problem. Don't put that on your shoulders." Duke turned back to his sister.

"Look, no. I know it sounds stupid. But, listen. When we got to the hospital, when you were still…when you were not awake yet. Well, they told us to sort of go and talk to you, like, sort of what we wanted you to know. Just, just in case. They said you could hear us, maybe." Her eyes brimmed again. Duke took her hand.

_No one told me this part._

"So, you know, we were all together, but then Pop said we should each have our own time. He said that would make it easier." A tear escaped down her cheek. "It wasn't pretty. You had all these tubes. That big one down your throat. All up in you under the covers and stuff. When it was my turn, I told you what I always say."

"What you always say?"

"I do it all the time. I have. Since Mamma let me light the candle in the window every night…so you can always find a way back home."

Mamma had lit a candle in the front window every night since Duke had left for Vietnam. His siblings had soon taken turns being the one to light it. When Vincent enlisted, she started lighting two.

"I snuck a candle into the room. Bazooka got one for me. He was in the hospital, too. He got me some matches and a candle. He's really nice."

"Good old Bazook'." Simple as he was, he wasn't an idiot. Duke knew that no matter what happened, he could always rely on Bazooka to come through in the end.

"I snuck it in, and I lit it, see. And I said what I say every night." More tears followed the first.

Duke took out his handkerchief and dried her face. "Which is?"

"I said, 'Duke, you'd _better_ come back. You'd _better _not die. Don't you _dare_ go and die and leave me all alone. I love you, and if you don't come back, I'm going to be really _mad_. Really _lonely_. So don't die. I won't let you. You don't have my permission, so you can't. See this candle? Follow it home to me.' And a few hours later, you woke up. So you did hear me." She sniffled a few times, tears driven away by determination. "But I don't know if that's going to keep working if I'm not right there next time."

Duke looked down at his baby sister in shock. Then he held her to him, hard. "Rabbit…you can't…I don't…I _have _to go back. It's my job, Rabbit. I have a responsibility."

"What about your responsibility to me?"

"Rabbit, as long as you keep lighting that candle, I'll do my very best to get home safe. I'm sorry I can't be here. I don't want you to be lonely. But you'll be out of the house sooner than you think."

Drew looked unconvinced. She turned to Scarlett. "Will you keep an eye on him?"

"Sure. I've been watching his back since the beginning. He watches mine. We have each others sixes." Scarlett touched Duke's shoulder, then Drew's. "My brothers asked him the same thing. I figure I can make you the same deal."

Drew held out her hand, and Scarlett shook it. "Deal. Don't let him do anything stupid."

Duke laughed.

"Plus, you both gotta watch out for Vince."

"Oh, he's getting pretty handy at watching out for himself, these days, Rabbit. But you know I'll always have my eye on him."

"Good."

For a while, all three stared out at the scoreboard. Duke pointed to a few numbers across the top. "See that 'thirty' there, Red? That's mine."

"That's yours? What do you mean?"

"They retired his number. When Joe started hitting the news. After he was blown off the oil platform and survived. After you guys kicked Cobra out of Washington. They retired his jersey number." Drew slid off her bleacher.

"Figures you'd let your shirt retire before you do, Duke."


End file.
